A user who has permission to materialize assets can cause a DAG to run through the Airflow UI or API even if the user does not have explicit permission to run that DAG. The flaw allows the user to trigger any DAG that is available in the system, which could lead to execution of code defined in the DAG and therefore compromise the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of the environment. This is a classic missing-authorization weakness categorized as CWE-863.

All versions of Apache Airflow prior to 3.2.0 are affected. Migrating to Airflow 3.2.0 or newer removes the vulnerability by enforcing proper authorization on DAG triggers.

The vulnerability requires an authenticated user with asset materialization rights, making it an insider or privileged‑user threat. The CVSS score of 7.5 indicates a high severity, while the EPSS score of <1% suggests a low likelihood of exploitation in the wild; the issue is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog. Given that triggering a malicious DAG could provide an attacker with arbitrary code execution on the Airflow infrastructure, the potential impact remains high. Exploitation would involve the user logging into the Airflow UI or making API calls to trigger the desired DAG, which can be accomplished without privileges beyond those already granted for asset materialization.