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Vulnerability record · CVE-2026-42589 · published 14 May 2026

CVE-2026-42589: Thecodingmachine gotenberg os command injection vulnerability

Thecodingmachine · Gotenberg

Gotenberg is a Docker-powered stateless API for PDF files. Prior to 8.31.0, Gotenberg's /forms/pdfengines/metadata/write HTTP endpoint accepts a JSON metadata object and passes its keys directly to ExifTool via the go-exiftool library. No validation is performed on key characters. A \n embedded in a JSON key splits the ExifTool stdin stream into a new argument line, allowing an attacker to inject arbitrary ExifTool flags — including -if, which evaluates Perl expressions. This achieves unauthenticated OS command execution in a single HTTP request. The response is HTTP 200 with a valid PDF, making the attack transparent to basic monitoring. This vulnerability is fixed in 8.31.0.

9.8 CVSS 3.1 Critical EPSS 3.7% · top 10.7% CWE-78 · OS command injection
9.8CVSS 3.1 base score
3.7%EPSS exploitation probability, 30 days
NoNot in CISA KEV
1Affected product versions listed by NVD
2References, 2 tagged exploit
17 Jun 2026Last modified by NVD

Description

Gotenberg is a Docker-powered stateless API for PDF files. Prior to 8.31.0, Gotenberg's /forms/pdfengines/metadata/write HTTP endpoint accepts a JSON metadata object and passes its keys directly to ExifTool via the go-exiftool library. No validation is performed on key characters. A \n embedded in a JSON key splits the ExifTool stdin stream into a new argument line, allowing an attacker to inject arbitrary ExifTool flags — including -if, which evaluates Perl expressions. This achieves unauthenticated OS command execution in a single HTTP request. The response is HTTP 200 with a valid PDF, making the attack transparent to basic monitoring. This vulnerability is fixed in 8.31.0.

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Affected products

1 vulnerable configurations from NVD's CPE data, grouped by vendor and product.

References

LinkTags
https://github.com/gotenberg/gotenberg/security/advisories/GHSA-rqgh-gxv4-6657 ExploitMitigationVendor Advisory
https://github.com/gotenberg/gotenberg/security/advisories/GHSA-rqgh-gxv4-6657 ExploitMitigationVendor Advisory

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Related vulnerabilities

Same products first, then exploited flaws of the same weakness class.

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Source: NIST National Vulnerability Database (record CVE-2026-42589), CISA KEV, FIRST EPSS (scores of 2026-09-26). This page is refreshed as NVD updates the record.