Summary
Directus: Sensitive fields exposed in revision history
Directus stores revision records (in directus_revisions) whenever items are created or updated. Due to the revision snapshot code not consistently calling the prepareDelta sanitization pipeline, sensitive fields (including user tokens, two-factor authentication secrets, external auth identifiers, auth data, stored credentials, and AI provider API keys) could be stored in plaintext within revision records.
Affected code paths
- Item create/update revisions The data (snapshot) field written to directus_revisions was not processed through prepareDelta, so concealed/encrypted fields were stored without redaction. Relational fields were also included, which should have been excluded.
- Authentication service When a user was auto-suspended after repeated failed login attempts, the revision record was created with the raw user object (including all sensitive fields) rather than the sanitized delta.
Impact
Any user or service account with read access to directus_revisions (or flow logs) could retrieve values for fields that are supposed to be concealed or encrypted at rest, including:
token,tfa_secret,external_identifier,auth_data,credentialsai_openai_api_key,ai_anthropic_api_key,ai_google_api_key,ai_openai_compatible_api_key
This could lead to account takeover (via stolen tokens or 2FA secrets) or unauthorized use of third-party API keys stored against users.
CVE-2026-39943 has a CVSS score of 6.5 (Medium). The vector is network-reachable, low privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (11.17.0); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.
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.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2026-39943? CVE-2026-39943 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in directus (npm), affecting versions < 11.17.0. It is fixed in 11.17.0.
- How severe is CVE-2026-39943? CVE-2026-39943 has a CVSS score of 6.5 (Medium). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
- Which versions of directus are affected by CVE-2026-39943? directus (npm) versions < 11.17.0 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2026-39943? Yes. CVE-2026-39943 is fixed in 11.17.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2026-39943 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2026-39943 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-2026-39943 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-2026-39943? Upgrade
directusto 11.17.0 or later.