What is CVE-2026-86079?

CVE-2026-86079 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in n8n (npm), affecting versions < 1.123.76. It is fixed in 1.123.76, 2.38.2, 2.37.7. Input manipulates file paths to reach files outside the intended directory, such as configuration or credential files.

Which versions of n8n are affected by CVE-2026-86079?

n8n (npm) versions < 1.123.76 is affected.

Is there a fix for CVE-2026-86079?

Yes. CVE-2026-86079 is fixed in 1.123.76, 2.38.2, 2.37.7. Upgrade to this version or later.

Is CVE-2026-86079 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2026-86079 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.

What actually determines whether CVE-2026-86079 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-2026-86079?

Upgrade: n8n to 1.123.76 or later, n8n to 2.38.2 or later, n8n to 2.37.7 or later.

CVE-2026-86079 in n8n

Q: Which versions of n8n are affected by CVE-2026-86079?

n8n (npm) versions < 1.123.76 is affected.

Q: Is there a fix for CVE-2026-86079?

Yes. CVE-2026-86079 is fixed in 1.123.76, 2.38.2, 2.37.7. Upgrade to this version or later.

Q: Is CVE-2026-86079 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2026-86079 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.

Q: What actually determines whether CVE-2026-86079 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.

Q: How do I fix CVE-2026-86079?

Upgrade: n8n to 1.123.76 or later, n8n to 2.38.2 or later, n8n to 2.37.7 or later.

Summary

n8n: Path Injection in Elasticsearch and ElasticSecurity Nodes via Unencoded Identifiers

Workarounds

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

Restrict n8n instance access to fully trusted users only.
Disable the affected nodes by adding n8n-nodes-base.elasticsearch and n8n-nodes-base.elasticSecurity to the NODES_EXCLUDE environment variable if they are not required.
Audit existing workflows that use these nodes and ensure that index and document identifier fields do not accept externally-controlled input.

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

Impact

The Elasticsearch and ElasticSecurity nodes built REST endpoints by interpolating user-provided identifiers straight into the request path. A value containing path separators or dot segments changed which endpoint the request actually reached, so an operation intended for one document could hit another index or a cluster administration endpoint instead, under the stored Elasticsearch credential. The patch encodes each identifier as a single URL path segment and rejects values that normalise away.

Input manipulates file paths to reach files outside the intended directory, such as configuration or credential files. Typical impact: unauthorized file read or write outside the intended directory.

Affected versions

n8n (< 1.123.76) n8n (>= 2.38.0, < 2.38.2) n8n (>= 2.0.0, < 2.37.7)

Security releases

n8n → 1.123.76 (npm) n8n → 2.38.2 (npm) n8n → 2.37.7 (npm)

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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Remediation advice

The issue has been fixed in n8n versions 1.123.76, 2.37.7, and 2.38.2. Users should upgrade to one of these versions or later to remediate the vulnerability.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-86079? CVE-2026-86079 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in n8n (npm), affecting versions < 1.123.76. It is fixed in 1.123.76, 2.38.2, 2.37.7. Input manipulates file paths to reach files outside the intended directory, such as configuration or credential files.
Which versions of n8n are affected by CVE-2026-86079? n8n (npm) versions < 1.123.76 is affected.
Is there a fix for CVE-2026-86079? Yes. CVE-2026-86079 is fixed in 1.123.76, 2.38.2, 2.37.7. Upgrade to this version or later.
Is CVE-2026-86079 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2026-86079 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-2026-86079 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-2026-86079?
- Upgrade n8n to 1.123.76 or later
- Upgrade n8n to 2.38.2 or later
- Upgrade n8n to 2.37.7 or later