Summary
Workarounds
If upgrading is not immediately possible, administrators should consider the following temporary mitigations:
- Limit workflow creation and editing permissions to fully trusted users only.
- Disable or restrict use of the Merge node if not essential for operations.
- Review workflows for suspicious use of the Merge node's SQL Query mode.
These workarounds do not fully remediate the risk and should only be used as short-term mitigation measures.
Resources
- n8n Documentation, Blocking nodes , how to globally disable specific nodes
n8n has adopted CVSS 4.0 as primary score for all security advisories. CVSS 3.1 vector strings are provided for backwards compatibility.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
Impact
A vulnerability in the Merge node's SQL Query mode allowed authenticated users with permission to create or modify workflows to write arbitrary files to the n8n server's filesystem potentially leading to remote code execution.
The application accepts file uploads without adequately restricting the file type or content. Typical impact: remote code execution if the uploaded file can be served and executed on the server.
Affected versions
Security releases
Kodem intelligence
Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.
Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.
Remediation advice
The issue has been fixed in n8n version 2.4.0, 1.118.0. Users should upgrade to this version or later to remediate the vulnerability.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2026-25056? CVE-2026-25056 is a critical-severity unrestricted upload of dangerous file types vulnerability in n8n (npm), affecting versions < 1.118.0. It is fixed in 1.118.0, 2.4.0. The application accepts file uploads without adequately restricting the file type or content.
- Which versions of n8n are affected by CVE-2026-25056? n8n (npm) versions < 1.118.0 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2026-25056? Yes. CVE-2026-25056 is fixed in 1.118.0, 2.4.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2026-25056 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2026-25056 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
- What actually determines whether CVE-2026-25056 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
- How do I fix CVE-2026-25056?
- Upgrade
n8nto 1.118.0 or later - Upgrade
n8nto 2.4.0 or later
- Upgrade