Next.js has a Middleware / Proxy bypass in App Router applications via segment-prefetch routes

Description

Impact

App Router applications that rely on middleware or proxy-based checks for authorization can allow unauthorized access through transport-specific route variants used for segment prefetching. In affected configurations, specially crafted .rsc and segment-prefetch URLs can resolve to the same page without being matched by the intended middleware rule, which can allow protected content to be reached without the expected authorization check.

Fix

We now include App Router transport variants when generating middleware matchers, so middleware protections are applied consistently to those requests as well as to the normal page URL.

Workarounds

If you cannot upgrade immediately, enforce authorization in the underlying route or page logic instead of relying solely on middleware.

Basic information

Type
reviewed
Severity
high
Advisory on GitHub
Open advisory ↗
Repository advisory
Open repository advisory ↗
Source code
Browse source ↗
Published (advisory)
2026-05-11 15:54:24 UTC
Updated
2026-05-14 20:38:09 UTC
GitHub reviewed
2026-05-11 15:54:24 UTC
NVD published
2026-05-13

EPSS Score

Score Percentile
0.03% 8.94%

CVSS Scores

Base score Version Severity Vector
7.5 3.1
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.

Identifiers

CWEs

CWE id Name
CWE-288 Authentication Bypass Using an Alternate Path or Channel

Affected packages (2)

Vulnerable version ranges and first patched releases as published by GitHub.

Ecosystem Package Vulnerable range First patched Vulnerable functions
npm next >= 15.2.0, < 15.5.16 15.5.16
npm next >= 16.0.0, < 16.2.5 16.2.5

References

cvelogic Threat Intelligence