# CVE-2026-74240: Red Hat Quay JWT validation bypass in federated authentication

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-74240-red-hat-quay-jwt-validation-bypass-in-federated-authentication  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-08-14. Updated: 2026-09-25  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-74240 · Severity: medium · CVSS 5.4 · Published 2026-08-14

Red Hat Quay is a container image registry used by enterprises to manage and distribute containerized applications. A flaw in its JWT (JSON Web Token) validation for federated robot accounts and single sign-on (SSO) authentication allows attackers with a valid token from the same identity provider to bypass security restrictions on audience, subject, and authorized-client limitations. This could enable unauthorized access to container images and registry resources.

Technologies: [Redhat Quay](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/quay). Vendors: [Redhat](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/redhat).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-74240 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-74240 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-74240?** Medium severity, with a CVSS score of 5.4, published 14 August 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** Red Hat Quay <UNKNOWN>.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-74240?** No fixed version is recorded yet. Check the vendor's advisory in the references below. If you run it, Junglewise drafts a mitigation that fits your setup and applies it once you approve, with senior security engineers behind it.

**How is CVE-2026-74240 attacked?** It is attacked over the network.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-74240?** Check whether you run Redhat Quay. 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.

## Technical details

The vulnerability is an improper authentication flaw (CWE-287) affecting JWT claim validation in Red Hat Quay's federated robot account and SSO authentication mechanisms. The root cause is insufficient enforcement of JWT audience verification and missing validation of 'azp' (authorized party) and 'sub' (subject) claims in certain configurations. An attacker with a validly-signed token from the same identity provider can exploit this by presenting the token to bypass configured security restrictions intended to limit audience, subject, or authorized-client access. Exploitation requires a pre-existing valid token from the same IdP (low privilege, network-accessible). Red Hat recommends configuring federated robot authentication with specific audiences to enable 'verify_aud' enforcement and explicitly enforcing 'azp' and 'sub' claims in federation configurations; patches are forthcoming.

## Affected products

- Red Hat Quay <UNKNOWN>

## Timeline

- 2026-08-14: disclosed

## References

- [https://access.redhat.com/downloads/content/package-browser/](https://access.redhat.com/downloads/content/package-browser/)
- [https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-74240](https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-74240)

## Related threats

- [Red Hat Quay Server-Side Request Forgery in build API](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-74247-red-hat-quay-server-side-request-forgery-in-build-api)
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- [Red Hat Quay Stripe webhook signature validation bypass](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-74244-red-hat-quay-stripe-webhook-signature-validation-bypass)
- [Red Hat Quay authentication bypass in security scanner notification endpoint](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-74243-red-hat-quay-authentication-bypass-in-security-scanner)
- [Red Hat Quay notification UUID authorization bypass](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-74242-red-hat-quay-notification-uuid-authorization-bypass)