# CVE-2026-117635: Gitea admin API token scope bypass

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-117635-the-api-v1-admin-route-group-did-not-enforce-the-public-only  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-11-01. Updated: 2026-11-01  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-117635 · Severity: info · Published 2026-11-01

Gitea is a self-hosted Git platform used by organizations to manage source code repositories. A security flaw allowed personal access tokens marked as "public-only" (intended for limited, public-data access) to bypass restrictions and access the admin API if issued by a site administrator, enabling attackers to list private organizations, harvest user email addresses, create new administrators, and obtain runner tokens—with admin account changes persisting even after token revocation.

Technologies: [Gitea](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/gitea). Vendors: [Gitea](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/gitea).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-117635 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-117635 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-117635?** Informational severity, published 1 November 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** Gitea before 28.3.0.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-117635?** Yes: fixed in Gitea 28.3.0. Junglewise finds every place you run it, drafts the upgrade and applies it once you approve.

**How is CVE-2026-117635 attacked?** It is attacked over the network, in a web application.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-117635?** Check whether you run Gitea at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

## How to fix

- Fixed in Gitea 28.3.0

## Technical details

The `/api/v1/admin` route group failed to enforce the public-only restriction on personal access tokens, allowing an admin-scoped public-only token to bypass visibility controls. An attacker with such a token could enumerate private organizations, exfiltrate user email addresses, create organizations, obtain CI/CD runner registration tokens, and create additional site administrator accounts whose persistence survives token revocation. The vulnerability is now fixed by rejecting public-only tokens on all admin API endpoints.

## Affected products

- Gitea Gitea before 28.3.0

## Timeline

- 2026-11-01: disclosed
- 2026-11-01: patched

## References

- [https://blog.gitea.com/release-of-28.3.0/](https://blog.gitea.com/release-of-28.3.0/)
- [https://github.com/go-gitea/gitea/pull/39690](https://github.com/go-gitea/gitea/pull/39690)

## Related threats

- [Gitea account takeover via OAuth2 auto-linking](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-120263-when-oauth2-client-account-linking-is-set-to-auto-not-the)
- [Gitea limited-visibility profile disclosure via public-only token](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-119627-the-web-profile-and-rss-atom-feed-routes-of-users-and)
- [Gitea token scope bypass in web routes](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-119625-the-username-web-route-accepted-personal-access-tokens-over-http)
- [Gitea project boards information disclosure of private pull requests](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-119533-repository-and-organization-project-boards-listed-the-pull)
- [Gitea API token scope bypass in repository deletion](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-119441-delete-api-v1-orgs-org-repos-deletes-all-repositories-of-an)