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CVE-2026-42589: gotenberg vulnerability
CVE-2026-42589: critical vulnerability affecting gotenberg. Check CVSS, KEV status, business impact and recommended administrator actions.
- CVSS
- 9.8 CRITICAL
- EPSS
- 86.01%
- Known exploited
- not in KEV
- Product
- gotenberg
What is known
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.
Business impact
Successful exploitation of CVE-2026-42589, a critical vulnerability (CVSS 9.8) affecting gotenberg, may affect the confidentiality, integrity or availability of the vulnerable environment. The exact impact depends on the installed version, exposed interfaces and deployment configuration.
Recommended administrator action
Confirm whether gotenberg is present and compare installed versions with the vendor advisory and NVD record. Apply the vendor patch or documented mitigation; until remediation is complete, reduce exposure of affected interfaces, review relevant logs and monitor for indicators of exploitation. DataHouse can support version verification, managed patching, network exposure reduction, log review and backup validation for dedicated, cloud and colocated environments.