Executive brief
Parse Server is an open-source backend used to power mobile and web applications. A security flaw allows logged-in users to modify their own session data to prevent their login from ever expiring. This could allow an attacker to maintain permanent access to an account even if security policies require periodic re-authentication.
Technical details
A vulnerability in Parse Server's session management allows authenticated users to bypass immutability guards on specific session fields, such as 'expiresAt' and 'createdWith'. By sending a null value in a PUT request to the session update endpoint, the server fails to enforce the expected immutability, effectively nullifying the session's expiration timestamp. This results in the session remaining valid indefinitely, bypassing any configured session length or rotation policies. The issue stems from an incorrect comparison or 'falsy-value' guard in the backend logic. It has been patched in versions 8.6.69 and 9.7.0-alpha.14.
Affected products
- Parse Platform Parse Server < 8.6.69, >= 9.0.0 < 9.7.0-alpha.14
Timeline
- 2026-03-31: disclosed
- 2026-03-31: advisory
- 2026-03-29: patched
References
- https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/commit/90802969fc713b7bc9733d7255c7519a6ed75d21
- https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/commit/ebccd7fe2708007e62f705ee1c820a6766178777
- https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/pull/10347
- https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/pull/10348
- https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/security/advisories/GHSA-f6j3-w9v3-cq22