Summary
Workarounds
No workaround is available beyond ensuring applications do not pass unvalidated/unsanitized data directly to the template engine. Upgrading to 3.1.5.RELEASE is strongly recommended in any case.
Impact
A security bypass vulnerability exists in the expression execution mechanisms of Thymeleaf up to and including 3.1.4.RELEASE. Although the library provides mechanisms to avoid the execution of potentially dangerous expressions in some specific sandboxed (restricted) contexts, it fails to properly neutralize specific constructs that allow this kind of expressions to be executed. If an application developer passes to the template engine unsanitized variables that contain such expressions, and these values are used in sandboxed contexts inside the templates, these expressions can be executed achieving Server-Side Template Injection (SSTI).
CVE-2026-41901 has a CVSS score of 9.0 (Critical). The vector is network-reachable, no 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 (3.1.5.RELEASE); 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.
Remediation advice
This has been fixed in Thymeleaf 3.1.5.RELEASE. All users are advised to upgrade immediately.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2026-41901? CVE-2026-41901 is a critical-severity security vulnerability in org.thymeleaf:thymeleaf (maven), affecting versions <= 3.1.4.RELEASE. It is fixed in 3.1.5.RELEASE.
- How severe is CVE-2026-41901? CVE-2026-41901 has a CVSS score of 9.0 (Critical). 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 packages are affected by CVE-2026-41901?
org.thymeleaf:thymeleaf(maven) (versions <= 3.1.4.RELEASE)org.thymeleaf:thymeleaf-spring5(maven) (versions <= 3.1.4.RELEASE)org.thymeleaf:thymeleaf-spring6(maven) (versions <= 3.1.4.RELEASE)
- Is there a fix for CVE-2026-41901? Yes. CVE-2026-41901 is fixed in 3.1.5.RELEASE. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2026-41901 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2026-41901 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-2026-41901 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-2026-41901?
- Upgrade
org.thymeleaf:thymeleafto 3.1.5.RELEASE or later - Upgrade
org.thymeleaf:thymeleaf-spring5to 3.1.5.RELEASE or later - Upgrade
org.thymeleaf:thymeleaf-spring6to 3.1.5.RELEASE or later
- Upgrade