CVE-2026-42226

Workarounds

If upgrading is not immediately possible, administrators should consider the following temporary mitigations:

• Restrict n8n access to fully trusted users only.
• Avoid sharing workflows with users who should not have access to the credentials those workflows reference.

These workarounds do not fully remediate the risk and should only be used as short-term mitigation measures.

The dynamic-node-parameters endpoints did not verify whether the authenticated caller was authorized to use a supplied credential reference. An authenticated user with access to a shared workflow could supply a foreign credential ID in the request body, causing the backend to decrypt and use that credential in a helper execution path where the caller also controls the destination URL. This allowed the caller to force the backend to authenticate against attacker-controlled infrastructure using a credential belonging to another user, effectively exfiltrating a reusable API key.

The issue is not limited to any single node type; any node that resolves credentials dynamically through these endpoints may be affected.

The application does not perform an authorization check before performing a sensitive operation. Typical impact: unauthorized access to restricted functionality or data.

CVE-2026-42226 has a CVSS score of 8.5 (High). 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 (2.17.5, 1.123.33); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Kodem intelligence

The issue has been fixed in n8n version 2.18.0. Users should upgrade to this version or later to remediate the vulnerability.

1. What is CVE-2026-42226? CVE-2026-42226 is a high-severity missing authorization vulnerability in n8n (npm), affecting versions >= 2.17.0, < 2.17.5. It is fixed in 2.17.5, 1.123.33. The application does not perform an authorization check before performing a sensitive operation.
2. How severe is CVE-2026-42226? CVE-2026-42226 has a CVSS score of 8.5 (High). 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.
3. Which versions of n8n are affected by CVE-2026-42226? n8n (npm) versions >= 2.17.0, < 2.17.5 is affected.
4. Is there a fix for CVE-2026-42226? Yes. CVE-2026-42226 is fixed in 2.17.5, 1.123.33. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is CVE-2026-42226 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2026-42226 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
6. What actually determines whether CVE-2026-42226 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.
7. How do I fix CVE-2026-42226?
   • Upgrade n8n to 2.17.5 or later
   • Upgrade n8n to 1.123.33 or later