CVE-2026-59259

n8n - Permission Bypass via Expression Parser Mismatch in External Secrets

Published Jul 15, 2026 CVSS 4.0 · 6 Medium EPSS < 1% KEV · Not listed
Description
n8n before versions 1.123.61, 2.27.4, and 2.28.1 contains a permission bypass vulnerability in external secrets handling caused by a mismatch between the static validation check and the runtime expression engine. An authenticated user with credential create or update permissions but without the externalSecret:list scope can embed external secret references into credentials in forms the static validation does not detect; these references resolve at workflow execution time, exposing secret values the user is not authorized to access. This issue only affects instances where an external secrets provider is configured and Advanced Permissions are in use.

Remediation

No solution or workaround provided in the CVE record

Tracking

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Advisories

Source ID Title
Github GHSA Github GHSA GHSA-jp7m-xcgx-57qm n8n: External Secrets Permission Bypass via Expression Parser Mismatch
History
Type Values Removed Values Added
Metrics ssvc

{'options': {'Automatable': 'no', 'Exploitation': 'none', 'Technical Impact': 'partial'}, 'version': '2.0.3'}

Type Values Removed Values Added
Description n8n before versions 1.123.61, 2.27.4, and 2.28.1 contains a permission bypass vulnerability in external secrets handling caused by a mismatch between the static validation check and the runtime expression engine. An authenticated user with credential create or update permissions but without the externalSecret:list scope can embed external secret references into credentials in forms the static validation does not detect; these references resolve at workflow execution time, exposing secret values the user is not authorized to access. This issue only affects instances where an external secrets provider is configured and Advanced Permissions are in use.
Title n8n - Permission Bypass via Expression Parser Mismatch in External Secrets
First Time appeared N8n
N8n n8n
Weaknesses CWE-639
CPEs cpe:2.3:a:n8n:n8n:*:*:*:*:enterprise:node.js:*:*
Vendors & Products N8n
N8n n8n
References
Metrics cvssV4_0

{'score': 6, 'vector': 'CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N'}

Weaknesses

Sources

Status
PUBLISHED
Assigner
VulnCheck
Published
Updated
Oct 29, 2026, 9:16 PM
Reserved
Jul 4, 2026, 12:17 PM
Status
Analyzed
Published
Jul 15, 2026, 12:18 PM
Modified
Oct 29, 2026, 7:17 PM