Summary
Next.js: Pending use cache fill can leak Draft Mode content into regular responses and persisted pages
Pending use cache fills are shared across requests for the same key without distinguishing Draft Mode requests from regular requests. When two such requests overlap, the second request receives the first request's fill:
- A regular request that overlaps an editor's Draft Mode request receives unpublished content, without any authentication.
- A Draft Mode request that overlaps a regular request receives published content instead of the draft.
If the overlapping regular request prerenders a page, for example an on-demand prerender of a route that was not prerendered at build time, the unpublished content can be persisted into the generated page and served to all later visitors of that route until the page is revalidated. Since cached functions can be shared across routes, the poisoned page does not need to be the page the editor is previewing.
Sites are affected if they enable Cache Components (or experimental.useCache) and serve Draft Mode previews whose cached functions return draft-dependent content.
Impact
CVE-2026-94544 has a CVSS score of 4.2 (Medium). The vector is network-reachable, no privileges required, and user interaction required. 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 (16.3.8); 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-2026-94544? CVE-2026-94544 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in next (npm), affecting versions >= 16.3.0, < 16.3.8. It is fixed in 16.3.8.
- How severe is CVE-2026-94544? CVE-2026-94544 has a CVSS score of 4.2 (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 next are affected by CVE-2026-94544? next (npm) versions >= 16.3.0, < 16.3.8 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2026-94544? Yes. CVE-2026-94544 is fixed in 16.3.8. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2026-94544 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2026-94544 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-2026-94544 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-2026-94544? Upgrade
nextto 16.3.8 or later.