Medium · CVSS 6.0CVE-2026-59259

n8n - Permission Bypass via Expression Parser Mismatch in External SecretsCVE-2026-59259

Answer in brief

CVE-2026-59259 records a Medium severity (CVSS 6.0) vulnerability in n8n - Permission Bypass via Expression Parser Mismatch in External Secrets. The current sources do not mark it as known exploited. The current feed maps n8n/n8n (generic), n8n/n8n (generic), n8n/n8n (generic). Check affected ranges and fixed versions before updating.

Analysis pending evidence review

HOL Guard separates source facts from reviewed analysis. See the methodology.

Published Jul 15, 2026Updated Oct 29, 2026Source checked Oct 29, 2026First seen by HOL Jul 15, 2026Material review Oct 29, 2026

Upstream Advisory

Key facts

Risk: Medium · CVSS 6.0
Exploitation: Not marked as known exploited
Affected software: 6 mapped packages or products
Fix availability: Available

Why this deserves its current priority

CVSS is 6.0. The current sources do not mark it as known exploited. Treat this as a source-backed prioritization signal, not a statement about your environment.

Analysis status

Analysis pending evidence review

Factual feed record only; HOL analysis is not approved for indexing. Read the methodology.

Affected scope and exposure questions

The current feed maps n8n/n8n (generic), n8n/n8n (generic), n8n/n8n (generic). Check affected ranges and fixed versions before updating.

Affected products and reported versions
Product	Affected versions	Fixed versions
cpe:2.3:a:n8n:n8n:2.28.0::::community:node.js::*	Not reported	Not reported
cpe:2.3:a:n8n:n8n:2.28.0::::enterprise:node.js::*	Not reported	Not reported
cpe:2.3:a:n8n:n8n::::::node.js::*	Not reported	Not reported

Mapped affected packages and fixed versions
Package	Affected range	Fixed version
n8n/n8ngeneric	>=0 <1.123.61	1.123.61
n8n/n8ngeneric	>=2.28.0 <2.28.1	2.28.1
n8n/n8ngeneric	>=2.0.0-rc.0 <2.27.4	2.27.4

Recommended response

Check inventory. Check lockfiles and deployed manifests for n8n/n8n, n8n/n8n, n8n/n8n.
Review the reported fix. Update n8n/n8n to 1.123.61; n8n/n8n to 2.28.1; n8n/n8n to 2.27.4 if you use the affected versions. Test the change in a non-production environment first.

Evidence timeline and material changes

Published upstream
Jul 15, 2026
Evidence: source:cvelist:source_dates:source-dates:record
Source modified
Oct 29, 2026
Evidence: source:cvelist:source_dates:source-dates:record
First seen by HOL
Jul 15, 2026

Sources and claim methodology

Upstream source 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.

Quoted source text, attributed separately from HOL analysis.