# CVE-2026-68968: Apache Airflow: Authorization bypass in the Backfill API through conflicting interpretations of the backfill id

Status: published. Published: 2026-08-12. Updated: 2026-11-03.

Apache Airflow's Backfill API authorized a request against a Dag id supplied by the caller whenever the `backfill_id` path segment failed to parse. The authorization dependency parsed it with `int()` while the route handler parsed it as pydantic's `NonNegativeInt`, which accepts values `int()` rejects (`1.0` coerces to `1`); FastAPI resolves dependencies before endpoint validation, so the two acted on different Dags. An authenticated user holding edit permission on any single Dag could therefore read, pause and cancel backfills belonging to any other Dag, including moving another Dag's queued runs to `failed`. No non-default configuration is required and backfill ids are sequential, so finding a target is trivial. Users are advised to upgrade to apache-airflow 3.3.1 or later, which parses the backfill id with the same type the routes declare.

## Remediation

- fix: The reporting source identifies this reference as a patch. Check the advisory for affected versions and supported release branches. (source: CNA: apache) — https://github.com/apache/airflow/pull/70889

## Affected products and versions

- Apache Software Foundation / Apache Airflow (apache-airflow): ≥ 0; < 3.0.0 (affected, semver). Source: CNA: apache
- Apache Software Foundation / Apache Airflow (apache-airflow-core): ≥ 3.0.0; < 3.3.1 (affected, semver). Source: CNA: apache

## Severity and prioritization

- CVSS 3.1: 7.5 (high); CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N; source: ADP: CISA-ADP

- CISA KEV: No listing in collected sources

- EPSS: 0.42% as of 2026-11-02; percentile 35.96%

- SSVC: exploitation none; automatable no; technical impact partial; source ADP: CISA-ADP

- Weaknesses: CWE-436

## Exploit evidence

No exploit evidence in collected sources. This is not proof of no exploitation.

## References

- https://github.com/apache/airflow/pull/70889 (CNA: apache; patch)

- https://lists.apache.org/thread/f9zmw6xs5b4syhwzbl6fsxm4kf2632ol (CNA: apache; vendor-advisory)

- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/08/12/12 (ADP: CVE)

## Provenance

- CNA: apache: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-68968; retrieved 2026-11-03; source updated 2026-11-03

- FIRST EPSS: https://api.first.org/data/v1/epss?cve=CVE-2026-68968; retrieved 2026-11-03; source updated Not reported

Revision: 119887be48f51e9d5a8600d99e164b1a6efddd247e23031d503783877f2846d4

Canonical: https://y2.dev/cve/CVE-2026-68968

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