CVE-2026-55987

Gitea: OAuth2 sign-in reactivates an administrator-deactivated account on auth sources without refresh tokens (incomplete fix of #38009)

Published

2026-07-21

Modified

2026-07-21

Aliases

GHSA-vrhc-jjfc-m3m3

Sources

github-advisory

Summary

## Description Gitea's OAuth2 sign-in callback reactivates a deactivated user account (`IsActive=false`) when the user signs in through an authentication source that does not issue refresh tokens (notably GitHub, and any OIDC/OAuth2 source configured without `offline_access`). PR #38009 added a gate intended to reactivate users only when the OAuth2 auto-sync cron had disabled them, using "the stored refresh token is empty" as the signal. That signal is wrong: for sources that never issue refresh tokens, an empty refresh token is the normal state of every user, so the gate cannot distinguish a cron-disabled account from one an administrator deliberately deactivated. The next time the administrator-deactivated user signs in through the provider, Gitea sets `IsActive=true` and grants a full session, silently undoing the administrator's action. This is the exact behavior #38009 was written to prevent. (`ProhibitLogin`, the hard ban, is enforced separately and is not affected.) No special privileges are required beyond being the deactivated user and being able to sign in through the source. ### Root Cause `routers/web/auth/oauth.go` (the `handleOAuth2SignIn` reactivation gate): ```go if !u.IsActive { extLogin, hasExt, err := user_model.GetExternalLogin(ctx, authSource.ID, gothUser.UserID) if err != nil { ctx.ServerError("GetExternalLogin", err); return } isDisabledByAutoSync := hasExt && extLogin.RefreshToken == "" // wrong signal if isDisabledByAutoSync { opts.IsActive = optional.Some(true) // reactivates the account } } ``` The assumption that `RefreshToken == ""` is produced only by the auto-sync cron is false: - The cron's disable path is unreachable for sources without refresh tokens. `services/auth/source/oauth2/source_sync.go` returns early: `if !provider.RefreshTokenAvailable() { return ... }`, so it never disables (or touches the tokens of) such users. - The stored token is exactly what the provider returned, with no synthesizing: `services/externalaccount/user.go` stores `RefreshToken: gothUser.RefreshToken`. When the provider issues none, this is `""` from the first login. - GitHub never issues a refresh token: `goth` hardcodes `func (p *Provider) RefreshTokenAvailable() bool { return false }` (`providers/github/github.go`). OIDC/OAuth2 without `offline_access` likewise store `""`. So for a GitHub (or no-refresh-token) source, `RefreshToken == ""` is the state of every user, including one an administrator deactivated, and the gate reactivates them. ### Proof of Concept Setup: - A Gitea instance with a GitHub authentication source (Admin Panel -> Authentication Sources -> OAuth2 -> GitHub), or any OAuth2/OIDC source configured without `offline_access`. - Account V: a normal user who has signed in at least once through that source (an `external_login_user` row exists with empty `refresh_token`). Steps: 1. As an administrator, open Admin Panel -> Users -> V and uncheck "Activated" (`is_active=false`). Confirm V's requests now bounce to the activation page. 2. As V, sign in again via "Sign in with GitHub" and complete the provider flow. 3. V lands in the application with a working session. `SELECT is_active FROM "user" WHERE lower_name='v';` now returns `true`. Expected (intended by #38009): V stays `is_active=false` and is routed to the activation page. Actual: V is `is_active=true` with a full session — the administrator's deactivation is undone. ``` - GitHub user, ADMIN deactivated refreshToken="" -> REACTIVATED + session granted stays disabled (control) - OIDC user, AUTO-SYNC cron disabled refreshToken="" -> REACTIVATED (intended) RESULT: BYPASS CONFIRMED. ``` Gitea's own regression test `TestOAuth2CallbackReactivationGating` ("auto-sync-disabled user is reactivated") sets `RefreshToken=""` and asserts reactivation after a

Affected packages

Remediation: Upgrade to 1.27.0 or later.

References

• https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-vrhc-jjfc-m3m3