CVE-2023-22474
Parse Server is vulnerable to authentication bypass via spoofing
Parse Server is an open source backend that can be deployed to any infrastructure that can run Node.js. Parse Server uses the request header x-forwarded-for to determine the client IP address. If Parse Server doesn't run behind a proxy server, then a client can set this header and Parse Server will trust the value of the header. The incorrect client IP address will be used by various features in Parse Server. This allows to circumvent the security mechanism of the Parse Server option masterKeyIps by setting an allowed IP address as the x-forwarded-for header value. This issue has been patched in version 5.4.1. The mechanism to determine the client IP address has been rewritten. The correct IP address determination now requires to set the Parse Server option trustProxy.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges needed
- High
- User interaction
- None
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
8.7
Parse Server is vulnerable to authentication bypass via spoofing
Parse Server is an open source backend that can be deployed to any infrastructure that can run Node.js. Parse Server uses the request header x-forwarded-for to determine the client IP address. If Parse Server doesn't run behind a proxy server, then a client can set this header and Parse Server will trust the value of the header. The incorrect client IP address will be used by various features in Parse Server. This allows to circumvent the security mechanism of the Parse Server option masterKeyIps by setting an allowed IP address as the x-forwarded-for header value. This issue has been patched in version 5.4.1. The mechanism to determine the client IP address has been rewritten. The correct IP address determination now requires to set the Parse Server option trustProxy.
- Record
CVE-2023-22474- CVSS 3.1
- 8.7 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-290
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2023-0561
8.7
Parse Server is an open source backend that can be deployed to any infrastructure that can run Node.js. Parse Server uses the request header x-forwarded-for to determine the client IP address. If Parse Server doesn't run behind a proxy server, then a client can set this header and Parse Server will trust the value of the header. The incorrect client IP address will be used by various features in Parse Server. This allows to circumvent the security mechanism of the Parse Server option masterKeyIps by setting an allowed IP address as the x-forwarded-for header value. This issue has been patched in version 5.4.1. The mechanism to determine the client IP address has been rewritten. The correct IP address determination now requires to set the Parse Server option trustProxy.
- Record
EUVD-2023-0561- CVSS 3.1
- 8.7 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N - Updated
- 2026-11-03
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-vm5r-c87r-pf6x
8.7
Parse Server option `masterKeyIps` vulnerability to IP spoofing
Impact
Parse Server uses the request header x-forwarded-for to determine the client IP address. If Parse Server doesn't run behind a proxy server, then a client can set this header and Parse Server will trust the value of the header. The incorrect client IP address will be used by various features in Parse Server. This allows to circumvent the security mechanism of the Parse Server option masterKeyIps by setting an allowed IP address as the x-forwarded-for header value.
Patches
The mechanism to determine the client IP address has been rewritten. The correct IP address determination now requires to set the Parse Server option trustProxy accordingly, see the express framework's trust proxy setting.
References
- Record
GHSA-vm5r-c87r-pf6x- CVSS 3.1
- 8.7 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-290
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
8.7
Parse Server is an open source backend that can be deployed to any infrastructure that can run Node.js. Parse Server uses the request header x-forwarded-for to determine the client IP address. If Parse Server doesn't run behind a proxy server, then a client can set this header and Parse Server will trust the value of the header. The incorrect client IP address will be used by various features in Parse Server. This allows to circumvent the security mechanism of the Parse Server option masterKeyIps by setting an allowed IP address as the x-forwarded-for header value. This issue has been patched in version 5.4.1. The mechanism to determine the client IP address has been rewritten. The correct IP address determination now requires to set the Parse Server option trustProxy.
- Record
CVE-2023-22474- CVSS 3.1
- 8.7 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N - CVSS 3.1
- 8.1 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-290
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV
8.7
Parse Server is vulnerable to authentication bypass via spoofing
Parse Server is an open source backend that can be deployed to any infrastructure that can run Node.js. Parse Server uses the request header x-forwarded-for to determine the client IP address. If Parse Server doesn't run behind a proxy server, then a client can set this header and Parse Server will trust the value of the header. The incorrect client IP address will be used by various features in Parse Server. This allows to circumvent the security mechanism of the Parse Server option masterKeyIps by setting an allowed IP address as the x-forwarded-for header value. This issue has been patched in version 5.4.1. The mechanism to determine the client IP address has been rewritten. The correct IP address determination now requires to set the Parse Server option trustProxy.
- Record
CVE-2023-22474- CVSS 3.1
- 8.7 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-290
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVGHSA-vm5r-c87r-pf6x
8.7
Parse Server option `masterKeyIps` vulnerability to IP spoofing
Impact
Parse Server uses the request header x-forwarded-for to determine the client IP address. If Parse Server doesn't run behind a proxy server, then a client can set this header and Parse Server will trust the value of the header. The incorrect client IP address will be used by various features in Parse Server. This allows to circumvent the security mechanism of the Parse Server option masterKeyIps by setting an allowed IP address as the x-forwarded-for header value.
Patches
The mechanism to determine the client IP address has been rewritten. The correct IP address determination now requires to set the Parse Server option trustProxy accordingly, see the express framework's trust proxy setting.
References
- Record
GHSA-vm5r-c87r-pf6x- CVSS 3.1
- 8.7 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-290
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVBIT-parse-2023-22474 No score
Parse Server is vulnerable to authentication bypass via spoofing
Parse Server is an open source backend that can be deployed to any infrastructure that can run Node.js. Parse Server uses the request header x-forwarded-for to determine the client IP address. If Parse Server doesn't run behind a proxy server, then a client can set this header and Parse Server will trust the value of the header. The incorrect client IP address will be used by various features in Parse Server. This allows to circumvent the security mechanism of the Parse Server option masterKeyIps by setting an allowed IP address as the x-forwarded-for header value. This issue has been patched in version 5.4.1. The mechanism to determine the client IP address has been rewritten. The correct IP address determination now requires to set the Parse Server option trustProxy.
- Record
BIT-parse-2023-22474- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
Affected packages
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
parse-servernpm |
before 5.4.1 | 5.4.1 |
parseBitnami |
before 5.4.1 | 5.4.1 |
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| aliases | EUVD | |
| first indexed | CVE List, GitHub Advisories, NVD, OSV |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2023-22474 is a high vulnerability (CVSS 8.7) in Parseplatform Parse Server, published January 31, 2023. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 0.66%, the 51st percentile. Fixed in parse-server 5.4.1.
References
github.com/parse-community/parse-server/security/advisories/GHSA-vm5r-c87r-pf6x
github.com/parse-community/parse-server/commit/e016d813e083ce6828f9abce245d15b681a224d8
security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20230309-0005
nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-22474
github.com/advisories/GHSA-vm5r-c87r-pf6x
github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/tree/main/cves/2023/22xxx/CVE-2023-22474.json
github.com/parse-community/parse-server