CVEvulnerability

CVE-2026-42589

9.8 CRITICAL Published 2026-05-14 Modified 2026-06-17 Official page ↗
Status
Analyzed
Published
2026-05-14
Last modified
2026-06-17
Assigner
[email protected]
CVSS 3.1 ([email protected])
9.8 CRITICAL — CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Weaknesses
CWE-78

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.

Affected configurations

• thecodingmachine gotenberg (< 8.31.0)

Related

Weakness · CWE (1)

  • CWE-78 Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command weakness

References