Privilege Escalation in Chamilo LMS (CVE-2026-40291)
Summary
Vulnerability in Chamilo LMS (CVE-2026-40291). Successful exploitation can lead to full system takeover. Exploitable via PUT /api/users/{id}.
Original description
The description as published by the source.
Chamilo LMS is an open-source learning management system. In versions prior to 2.0.0-RC.3, an insecure direct object modification vulnerability in the PUT /api/users/{id} endpoint allows any authenticated user with ROLE_STUDENT to escalate their privileges to ROLE_ADMIN by modifying the roles field on their own user record. The API Platform security expression is_granted('EDIT', object) only verifies record ownership, and the roles field is included in the writable serialization group, enabling any user to set arbitrary roles such as ROLE_ADMIN. Successful exploitation grants full administrative control of the platform, including access to all courses, user data, grades, and administrative settings. This issue has been fixed in version 2.0.0-RC.3.
Source: NIST National Vulnerability Database NVD
Auto-generated summary
Assembled by SecPulse from the source data (CVSS, CWE, affected versions) using templates — no AI involved. Check the original description and references below for exact details.
A vulnerability tracked as CVE-2026-40291 has been found in Chamilo LMS.
Attackers can target a specific entry point like PUT /api/users/{id} over the network to misuse the product.
Successful exploitation can lead to full system takeover. CVSS score: 8.8/10.
What to do: apply the vendor's official patched release.
If unsure, ask your IT team or search "Chamilo LMS CVE-2026-40291" on the vendor's site.
CVE-2026-40291 (Chamilo LMS) — CWE-269 / CVSS v3 8.8
Attack vector: remote (network-reachable) / no user interaction
Attack surface: PUT /api/users/{id}
Plan: 1) Audit SBOM/dependencies, 2) Stage→prod upgrade, 3) Add WAF/proxy monitoring on affected endpoints, 4) Hunt IOCs in logs.
Refs: see the GHSA / vendor advisory / patched release linked on this page.
A vulnerability (CWE-269) exists in Chamilo LMS. Attackers reach the vulnerable code path via PUT /api/users/{id}.
Check the vendor advisory for the affected versions of Chamilo LMS. Attack surface: PUT /api/users/{id}.
Severity: High (CVSS 8.8/10). Successful exploitation can lead to full system takeover.
Update to the patched release per vendor advisory.
Until the patch is applied: disable the affected feature, apply WAF rules, or restrict access via network ACLs.
Search webserver/proxy logs for unusual PUT /api/users/{id} requests with malformed payloads or SQL meta-characters. Audit SBOM/dependencies to find affected services.
Response actions
Concrete steps and command examples for SOC/SRE teams to execute in order
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1Identify exposure identify
Audit SBOM/dependencies for affected components.資産台帳・SBOM・依存マニフェストで Chamilo LMS を使っているサービスとバージョンを洗い出す。
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2Hunt for indicators of compromise detect
grep 'PUT /api/users/{id}' /var/log/nginx/access.log | grep -E '(unusual_payload|sqli_pattern)'アクセスログで
PUT /api/users/{id}への異常なリクエスト (不正な認証ヘッダ・SQLメタ文字)を過去 30〜90日分捜索。WAF/SIEM があれば該当パスのアラート発火履歴を確認。 -
3Post-deployment verification verify
Replay attack against PUT /api/users/{id} on staging to confirm patch closes the vectorパッチ適用後、ステージングで PoC または同等の悪用パターンを再現して脆弱性が閉じたことを確認。本番では Step 2 と同じログクエリでアラート再発が無いか継続監視。