n8n: Agent Workflow Tool Bypasses Sub-Workflow Caller Policy (CVE-2026-86996) | HOL Guard CVE

Medium · CVSS 0.0CVE-2026-86996GHSA-7HGX-277F-7VMG

n8n: Agent Workflow Tool Bypasses Sub-Workflow Caller Policy

Answer in brief

CVE-2026-86996 records a Medium severity (CVSS 0.0) vulnerability in n8n: Agent Workflow Tool Bypasses Sub-Workflow Caller Policy. The current sources do not mark it as known exploited. The current feed maps n8n-io/n8n (generic), n8n (npm), n8n (npm). Check affected ranges and fixed versions before updating.

Analysis pending evidence review

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

Published Sep 8, 2026Updated Sep 8, 2026Source checked Sep 8, 2026First seen by HOL Sep 8, 2026Material review Sep 8, 2026

Upstream Advisory

Key facts

Risk: Medium · CVSS 0.0
Exploitation: Not marked as known exploited
Affected software: 3 mapped packages or products
Fix availability: Available

Why this deserves its current priority

CVSS is 0.0. 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-io/n8n (generic), n8n (npm), n8n (npm). Check affected ranges and fixed versions before updating.

Mapped affected packages and fixed versions
Package	Affected range	Fixed version
n8n-io/n8ngeneric	< 2.37.7 \|\| >= 2.38.0, < 2.38.2	Not reported
n8nnpm	>=2.38.0,<2.38.2	2.38.2
n8nnpm	<2.37.7	2.37.7

Recommended response

Check inventory. Check lockfiles and deployed manifests for n8n-io/n8n, n8n, n8n.
Review the reported fix. Update n8n to 2.38.2; n8n to 2.37.7 if you use the affected versions. Test the change in a non-production environment first.

Evidence timeline and material changes

Published upstream
Sep 8, 2026
Evidence: source:cvelist:source_dates:source-dates:record
Source modified
Sep 8, 2026
Evidence: source:cvelist:source_dates:source-dates:record
First seen by HOL
Sep 8, 2026

Sources and claim methodology

Upstream source description

n8n is an open source workflow automation platform. Prior to 2.37.7 and 2.38.2, the workflow setting named This workflow can be called by was enforced by the Execute Workflow node but not when a workflow was attached to an Agent as a tool. A user able to build an Agent could invoke a restricted workflow and read its returned data. The affected path is packages/cli/src/modules/agents/tools/workflow-tool-factory.ts, where executeWorkflow omitted SubworkflowPolicyChecker.checkForProject. This issue is fixed in versions 2.37.7 and 2.38.2.

Quoted source text, attributed separately from HOL analysis.