Skip to main content
Public proof of conceptFix available

CVE-2026-40281

A public proof of concept exists; no exploitation attested.

  • Published2026-05-06
  • WeaknessCWE-88

Am I affected?

With a domain, we read the version its public headers and pages expose. A distribution build can carry the fix under an older number.

Description

Gotenberg is a Docker-powered stateless API for PDF files. In versions 8.30.1 and earlier, the metadata write endpoint validates metadata keys for control characters but leaves metadata values unsanitized. A newline character in a metadata value splits the ExifTool stdin line into two separate arguments, allowing injection of arbitrary ExifTool pseudo-tags such as -FileName, -Directory, -SymLink, and -HardLink. This is a bypass of the incomplete key-sanitization fix introduced in v8.30.1. An unauthenticated attacker can rename or move any PDF being processed to an arbitrary path in the container filesystem, overwrite arbitrary files, or create symlinks and hard links at arbitrary paths.

Timeline

dates in UTC
  1. 2026-05-0621:16CVE publishedNVD

Versions per branch

OSV · NVD
gotenberg/gotenberg
BranchAffectedFixed in
—all versionsno fix published
Thecodingmachine gotenberg
BranchAffectedFixed in
8.31< 8.31.08.31.0

as publishedRanges as NVD and OSV publish them; a distribution’s build can be fixed under an older number.

Products declared by the CNA1 product

As GitHub_M, the CNA that assigned this CVE, declared them in the CVE record; versions as written.

  • gotenberg
    Affected
    • = <= 8.30.1no fix stated

Source: the CNA record (CVE Program), © The MITRE Corporation,CVE Terms of UseCVE recordupdated 2026-05-06

Distribution builds and vendor advisories

Packages from OSV.dev and products from the vendors' CSAF advisories.

version not verifiedVersions not verified: read as OSV.dev and the vendors publish them, not checked against each vendor's release list.

Packages

  • govulncheck-vulndbopenSUSE:Leap 16.0all versions · fixed in 0.0.20260723T184607-160000.1.1

Full record on NVD

Fix

Advisories and patches

Detection

read 2026-11-06 06:14 UTC
Nuclei template
available
ProjectDiscovery
Exploit-DB
no entry
Exploit-DB
Proof of concept
Metasploit modules
none listed
Metasploit Framework

Sources

Identifiers

Technical details

CVSS v3 Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H
Published
2026-05-06
Last Modified
2026-11-11
NVD status
Analyzed
GitHub Advisory
GHSA-q7r4-hc83-hf2q

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-40281?

Gotenberg is a Docker-powered stateless API for PDF files. In versions 8.30.1 and earlier, the metadata write endpoint validates metadata keys for control characters but leaves metadata values unsanitized. A newline character in a metadata value splits the ExifTool stdin line into two separate arguments, allowing injection of arbitrary ExifTool pseudo-tags such as -FileName, -Directory, -SymLink, and -HardLink. This is a bypass of the incomplete key-sanitization fix introduced in v8.30.1. An unauthenticated attacker can rename or move any PDF being processed to an arbitrary path in the container filesystem, overwrite arbitrary files, or create symlinks and hard links at arbitrary paths.

Is CVE-2026-40281 actively exploited?

A proof-of-concept exploit exists for CVE-2026-40281, but active exploitation has not been confirmed at this time.

What is the CVSS score for CVE-2026-40281?

CVE-2026-40281 has a CVSS v3 base score of 9.1 (CRITICAL severity), with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H.

Running gotenberg/gotenberg? Hear about its next vulnerability

Surveillance reads the versions in your stack — a domain, a lockfile or a list — checks each CVE against the ranges its sources publish, and alerts you when one you run is exploited or enters CISA KEV. A version it cannot read stays « version not verified ».

Get alerts for this productCISA KEV additions, November 2026Search CVEs

No credit card required · No monthly cap on website lookups · 250 API requests/month

Go further

Related vulnerabilities

Same product first, then the same vendor advisory and the same publication week.

Back to CVE Database

Sources for this record