---
title: "CVE-2025-44005: Step CA Has Authorization Bypass in ACME and SCEP Provisioners"
url: https://erroneo.us/security/cve/CVE-2025-44005/
description: "CVE-2025-44005 (github.com/smallstep/certificates (Go)): An attacker can bypass authorization checks and force a Step CA ACME or SCEP provisioner to create…"
type: vulnerability-record
section: "Security Digest"
date_published: 2025-12-17
date_modified: 2025-12-17
publisher: erroneo.us
author: erroneo.us Security Desk
cve: "CVE-2025-44005"
kev: false
cvss: 10
epss: 0.09091
license: All rights reserved. Quote with attribution and a link.
---

# CVE-2025-44005: Step CA Has Authorization Bypass in ACME and SCEP Provisioners

**Signal:** High exploit likelihood. EPSS ranks it in the top 5% of all CVEs for likely exploitation in the next 30 days. (Computed from CISA KEV, EPSS and CVSS; not an editorial verdict.)

## Should you act?

- Not in CISA KEV , but CISA’s SSVC assessment records a public proof-of-concept, so attack code exists.
- EPSS 9.1% , percentile 95: FIRST’s model estimates a 9.1% chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 95% of all scored CVEs (very high). EPSS is a probability, not a verdict.
- Remotely reachable with no login and no user interaction. If the vulnerable service is exposed to the internet, prioritize it.
- Only applies if your dependency tree includes github.com/smallstep/certificates (Go) <= 0.28.4, fixed in 0.29.0 . Check your lockfile, including transitive dependencies.

## What it is

An attacker can bypass authorization checks and force a Step CA ACME or SCEP provisioner to create certificates without completing certain protocol authorization checks.

## Affected packages

- Go `github.com/smallstep/certificates` <= 0.28.4 → fixed: 0.29.0

## Affected products (CVE record)

- smallstep Step-CA: 0.28.4, v0.28.3

## Severity

- talos CVSS 3.1: 10 `CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N`
- GitHub CVSS 3.1: 10.0 `CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N`

## Exploitation

- CISA KEV: not listed (no confirmed in-the-wild exploitation known to CISA).
- CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation poc , automatable yes , technical impact partial .
- FIRST EPSS (model of 2026-10-21): 9.09% probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 95.

## Sources

- [GitHub Advisory GHSA-h8cp-697h-8c8p](https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-h8cp-697h-8c8p)
- [CVE.org record CVE-2025-44005](https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-44005)
- [NVD entry CVE-2025-44005](https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-44005)
- [talosintelligence.com](https://talosintelligence.com/vulnerability_reports/TALOS-2025-2242)
- [github.com](https://github.com/smallstep/certificates/security/advisories/GHSA-h8cp-697h-8c8p)
- [talosintelligence.com](https://www.talosintelligence.com/vulnerability_reports/TALOS-2025-2242)
- [github.com](https://github.com/smallstep/certificates/commit/1011f5f5408b470a636f583bf74c0d7bbaf75d72)

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Source page: https://erroneo.us/security/cve/CVE-2025-44005/ · Security Digest: https://erroneo.us/security/ · More: https://erroneo.us/llms.txt