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medium · CVSS 6.6

CVE-2026-84716

Automation-controller: automation-controller: instance install_bundle issues 10-year, non-revocable receptor mesh-ca certificates for caller-chosen (and case-variant impersonating)

Published 23 Sept 2026 · Source updated 6 Nov 2026 · Retrieved 2026-11-06 01:53 UTC

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What happened?

A flaw was found in the automation-controller instance install-bundle endpoint. When a System Administrator downloads an execution/hop node's install bundle, the controller signs an X.509 certificate with the receptor mesh certificate authority in which the Common Name, DNS subject-alternative-name, and receptor node-id are taken verbatim from the caller-chosen instance hostname, with a hard-coded ten-year validity, a random serial, and no issuance log or revocation list. Because the hostname charset validator is case-insensitive while the uniqueness validator is case-sensitive, an administrator can register a case variant of an existing control node's hostname and obtain a mesh-CA-signed certificate that TLS peers, which match hostnames case-insensitively, accept as that control node. In managed/hosted deployments — where the customer holds controller superuser but the platform operator runs the mesh — this yields a long-lived, non-revocable mesh peer credential and, with an on-path position, TLS impersonation or interception of control/hybrid mesh nodes. It does not grant direct remote code execution, because receptor work submission is gated by a separate signing key not included in the bundle.

Description supplied by CVE Program. Formatting is simplified; follow the original advisory for full details.

Affected software and versions

Source-provided software and version information
SoftwareVersion informationFixed version
automation-controllerRed Hatunaffected: 0:4.6.33-1.el8ap to < *See vendor advisory
automation-controllerRed Hatunaffected: 0:4.6.33-1.el8ap to < *See vendor advisory
automation-controllerRed Hatunaffected: 0:4.6.33-1.el9ap to < *See vendor advisory
automation-controllerRed Hatunaffected: 0:4.6.33-1.el9ap to < *See vendor advisory
automation-controllerRed Hatunaffected: 0:4.7.17-1.el9ap to < *See vendor advisory
automation-controllerRed Hatunaffected: 0:4.7.17-1.el9ap to < *See vendor advisory
ansible-automation-platform-26/controller-rhel9Red Hatunaffected: 1789673739 to < *See vendor advisory
ansible-automation-platform-27/controller-rhel9Red Hatunaffected: 1789580684 to < *See vendor advisory

Version information comes from the source record and can include unaffected products and exceptions. Distribution packages may contain backported fixes: an older upstream version alone does not prove a server is affected.

Is it being exploited?

This CVE was not listed in the CISA catalogue at our last retrieval. This does not establish that exploitation is absent.

CISA data retrieved 2026-11-06 16:38 UTC. Check CISA ↗

How to respond

  1. Confirm the product, installed package version, and any configuration requirements in the vendor advisory.
  2. Follow the vendor’s remediation or workaround guidance in the references below. Structured fixed-version data is unavailable here; the publisher’s description may include a fix or workaround.
  3. Restart affected services if required, then verify the running version. Known exploitation may warrant investigation as well as patching.

Sources and remediation references

This public advisory does not determine whether a particular server is affected. Records are refreshed as sources change; verify urgent decisions against the original advisory.

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