Loading vulnerability…
CVE-2026-16764 is an improper privilege management vulnerability in OWASP DefectDojo 2.59.0 affecting the API/Web component. The flaw is located in the UserSerializer implementation in dojo/api_v2/serializers.py, where manipulation of the is_staff argument can result in unauthorized privilege assignment. A remote attacker can exploit this condition to alter staff status through the application interface, indicating insufficient enforcement of privilege-sensitive field handling during user-related API operations.
Mallory correlates every CVE against your assets, your vendors, and active adversary campaigns. Know which vulnerabilities matter for you, not just which ones are loud.
What it means. What to do now. Patch path, mitigations, and the assume-compromise checklist.
What an attacker gets, and what they’ve been doing with it.
If you can’t patch tonight, do this now.
Patch, then assume compromise.
1 valid exploit after Mallory filtered fakes, detection scripts, and README-only repos.
This two-file repository contains a Python proof-of-exploitation script and supporting README for CVE-2026-16764, an authenticated privilege escalation in OWASP DefectDojo. The script accepts a target URL, username, password, and optional TLS-verification bypass flag. It first obtains a DefectDojo API token, resolves the supplied account's ID, and PATCHes that account's REST record with is_staff=true. It then creates a cookie-based Django session, verifies access to /admin/, and submits the account's Django Admin change form with is_superuser enabled. The exploit reports success if the user API shows superuser status or the account gains visibility into additional products. It is an operational exploit rather than a detector: it changes target authorization state and requires valid low-privileged credentials with auth.change_user permission. No external framework is used.
Products and vendors Mallory has correlated with this vulnerability. Open in Mallory to drill down to specific CPE configurations and version ranges.
Vendor-confirmed product mapping. Mallory continuously reconciles this list against your asset inventory.
No public activity tracked yet. Mallory keeps watching.
No public activity observed for this vulnerability.
Query your assets running an affected version, and investigate the blast radius.
Every observed campaign linking this CVE to a named adversary.
Malware families riding this exploit, with evidence and IOCs.
YARA, Sigma, Snort, and vendor rules, auto-deployed to your SIEM.
Cross-references every affected SKU, including bundled OEM variants.
Community discussion across Reddit, Mastodon, and other social sources.