Litestar is an Asynchronous Server Gateway Interface (ASGI) framework. In version 2.17.0, rate limits can be completely bypassed by manipulating the X-Forwarded-For header. This renders IP-based rate limiting ineffective against determined attackers. Litestar's RateLimitMiddleware uses `cache_key_from_request()` to generate cache keys for rate limiting. When an X-Forwarded-For header is present, the middleware trusts it unconditionally and uses its value as part of the client identifier. Since clients can set arbitrary X-Forwarded-For values, each different spoofed IP creates a separate rate limit bucket. An attacker can rotate through different header values to avoid hitting any single bucket's limit. This affects any Litestar application using RateLimitMiddleware with default settings, which likely includes most applications that implement rate limiting. Version 2.18.0 contains a patch for the vulnerability.
History

Mon, 06 Oct 2025 16:15:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Metrics ssvc

{'options': {'Automatable': 'yes', 'Exploitation': 'poc', 'Technical Impact': 'partial'}, 'version': '2.0.3'}


Mon, 06 Oct 2025 15:45:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Description Litestar is an Asynchronous Server Gateway Interface (ASGI) framework. In version 2.17.0, rate limits can be completely bypassed by manipulating the X-Forwarded-For header. This renders IP-based rate limiting ineffective against determined attackers. Litestar's RateLimitMiddleware uses `cache_key_from_request()` to generate cache keys for rate limiting. When an X-Forwarded-For header is present, the middleware trusts it unconditionally and uses its value as part of the client identifier. Since clients can set arbitrary X-Forwarded-For values, each different spoofed IP creates a separate rate limit bucket. An attacker can rotate through different header values to avoid hitting any single bucket's limit. This affects any Litestar application using RateLimitMiddleware with default settings, which likely includes most applications that implement rate limiting. Version 2.18.0 contains a patch for the vulnerability.
Title X-Forwarded-For Header Spoofing Bypasses Litestar Rate Limiting
Weaknesses CWE-807
References
Metrics cvssV3_1

{'score': 7.5, 'vector': 'CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H'}


cve-icon MITRE

Status: PUBLISHED

Assigner: GitHub_M

Published:

Updated: 2025-10-06T15:35:41.813Z

Reserved: 2025-09-09T15:23:16.327Z

Link: CVE-2025-59152

cve-icon Vulnrichment

Updated: 2025-10-06T15:35:34.879Z

cve-icon NVD

Status : Received

Published: 2025-10-06T16:15:34.193

Modified: 2025-10-06T16:15:34.193

Link: CVE-2025-59152

cve-icon Redhat

No data.

cve-icon OpenCVE Enrichment

No data.