CVE-2026-88007: Traefik HTTP/3 Backend NTLM Connection Reuse

Should you act?

Critical and remotely reachable

No known exploitation yet, but it is network-reachable without credentials. This signal is computed from CISA KEV, EPSS and CVSS data; it is not an editorial verdict.

• No confirmed exploitation. It is not in CISA’s KEV catalog and CISA’s SSVC assessment records no known exploitation. That can change quickly after a public write-up; re-check if you are affected.
• EPSS 0.6%, percentile 48: FIRST’s model estimates a 0.6% chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 48% of all scored CVEs (low). 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/traefik/traefik/v3 (Go) >= 3.0.0, < 3.7.13, fixed in 3.7.13; github.com/traefik/traefik/v2 (Go) >= 2.11.0, < 2.11.57, fixed in 2.11.57. Check your lockfile, including transitive dependencies.

What it is

Traefik is an open source HTTP reverse proxy and load balancer. From 2.11.0 until 2.11.57 and 3.7.13, the HTTP/3 entrypoint ConnContext does not call service.AddTransportOnContext, so kerberosRoundTripper uses a shared backend transport instead of a transport dedicated to each frontend connection. With HTTP/3 enabled, a backend using connection-bound NTLM or Negotiate authentication, and backend keep-alive, an unrelated client can reuse a backend connection authenticated for a victim, read victim-only data, and act as that victim without the victim credentials. This issue is fixed in 2.11.57 and 3.7.13.

From the GitHub advisory

Summary

Traefik's HTTP/3 request path did not initialize the connection-scoped backend transport holder that isolates connection-bound NTLM and Negotiate (Kerberos) authentication on the HTTP/1.1 and HTTP/2 paths. The HTTP/3 entrypoint reuses the HTTPS handler chain and reaches the same backend round-tripper, but its ConnContext never called service.AddTransportOnContext, so kerberosRoundTripper fell back to the shared backend transport instead of a per-frontend-connection pool. On a route served over HTTP/3 to a backend that binds identity to a persistent connection via NTLM or Negotiate, an unrelated HTTP/3 client could be assigned a backend connection already authenticated as a victim and inherit that identity, reading victim-only data and performing actions as the victim without presenting the victim's credentials. Affected deployments require HTTP/3 enabled on the entrypoint, a backend using connection-bound NTLM/Negotiate authentication, and backend keep-alive; deployments using ordinary per-request authentication are not affected.

Patches

- https://github.com/traefik/traefik/releases/tag/v2.11.57 - https://github.com/traefik/traefik/releases/tag/v3.7.13

For more information

Weakness type: CWE-287, CWE-863.

Product: github.com/traefik/traefik/v3 (Go) · Assigned by: GitHub_M · Published: 2026-09-10

Affected and fixed versions

Severity scores

• Attack vector: network (remotely reachable)
• Attack complexity: low
• Attack requirements: present (depends on deployment conditions)
• Privileges required: none (no login)
• User interaction: none

CVSS measures how bad a flaw is if exploited, not how likely exploitation is. Read it next to the exploitation data below.

Exploitation and urgency

• CISA KEV: not listed (no confirmed in-the-wild exploitation known to CISA).
• CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation none, automatable yes, technical impact total.
• FIRST EPSS (model of 2026-10-21): 0.60% probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 48.

Timeline

• 2026-09-10 — CVE record last updated
• 2026-09-10 — CVE record published by GitHub_M
• 2026-09-10 — GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-qqjf-53cj-pwvv published (critical)

Sources and references

Original sources first. Version and fix details should always be confirmed against the vendor or project advisory.

Vulnerability records

1. GitHub Advisory GHSA-qqjf-53cj-pwvv github.com
2. CVE.org record CVE-2026-88007 cve.org
3. NVD entry CVE-2026-88007 nvd.nist.gov

Other references from the CVE record and advisory

1. github.com github.com
2. github.com github.com
3. github.com github.com
4. github.com github.com
5. github.com github.com

Critical Go advisories · Today’s Security Digest