CVE-2026-40861 | Apache Airflow: Arbitrary File Read via Log Symlink following in FileTaskHandler

A Dag author could either (a) create a symlink under their task's log directory pointing to an arbitrary file readable by the API server process (read-path attack — e.g. `/etc/passwd` or `airflow.cfg`) or (b) supply a `task_id` containing `..` sequences accepted by the Task SDK's `KEY_REGEX` (write-path attack), and in both cases the FileTaskHandler resolves the log path outside the configured `base_log_folder`, leaking or overwriting arbitrary files. Only affects deployments where the worker log folder is shared with the API server. Users are advised to upgrade to `apache-airflow` 3.2.2 or later. As a defense-in-depth mitigation, deploy the worker and API server with separate log volumes so that worker-controlled paths cannot reach the API server's filesystem.

Published: 2026-06-01 Last update: 2026-06-02 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Analyzed，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2026-40861 is rated Low Risk (33.6/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.07%). Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2026-40861

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-03 0.02% 0.07% +0.05%
2 2026-06-01 — 0.02% —

Full EPSS history (2 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2026-40861

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
6.5 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.
 2.8 3.6 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2026-40861

GitHub Security Advisory for CVE-2026-40861

GHSA-89cj-xrpx-j79m · Severity: medium — A Dag author could either (a) create a symlink under their task's log directory pointing to an...

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2026-40861

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
apache airflow < 3.2.2 cpe:2.3:a:apache:airflow:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2026-40861

cvelogic Threat Intelligence