Unauthorized Payroll Data Access in Frappe India-Payroll

Executive Summary

CVE-2026-129429 is a missing authorization vulnerability in Frappe india-payroll versions before 16.0.4. It affects methods like get_employee_details, compute_tax_comparison, and set_tax_regime in tax_regime_selector.py. Authenticated low-privileged users can exploit this to access or modify other employees' payroll data by supplying another employee identifier. This allows viewing sensitive payroll details or changing tax regimes in draft Salary Structure Assignments.

Useful 0 Not Useful 0

Detection Guidance

To detect this vulnerability, check if your india-payroll version is below 16.0.4. Review logs for unauthorized access attempts to employee payroll data or tax regime modifications. Inspect tax_regime_selector.py for missing authorization checks in get_employee_details, compute_tax_comparison, and set_tax_regime methods.

Useful 0 Not Useful 0

Impact Analysis

This vulnerability allows unauthorized users to read sensitive payroll data such as base pay, earnings, and deductions of other employees. It also enables altering tax regimes in draft assignments, potentially leading to incorrect tax withholding. Organizations using affected versions risk data breaches, financial discrepancies, and non-compliance with payroll regulations due to unauthorized modifications.

Useful 0 Not Useful 0

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could lead to violations of GDPR and HIPAA by exposing sensitive employee payroll data without authorization. GDPR requires strict access controls for personal data, while HIPAA mandates protection of health-related payroll information. Unauthorized access risks legal penalties, fines, and reputational damage due to non-compliance with data protection regulations.

Useful 0 Not Useful 0

Mitigation Strategies

Immediately upgrade india-payroll to version 16.0.4 or later. Ensure all users have only necessary permissions and review access logs for suspicious activity. Apply input validation and sanitization to prevent unauthorized data access or modification in tax-related functions.

Useful 0 Not Useful 0