CVE-2026-43895: jq: Embedded NUL in jq import paths causes local redaction-policy bypass and preserves sensitive fields in published artifacts
Noroxi assessment
Priority: Monitor (action score 17/100)
- The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
- Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.15% (FIRST EPSS).
- Someone with local access to the system can trigger it. A low-privileged account is enough. No user action is required. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
- Fixed version: azl3 jq 1.7.1-5 on Azure Linux 3.0 1.7.1-6; azl3 jq 1.7.1-6 on Azure Linux 3.0 1.7.1-6.
Low priority for now. Upgrade to azl3 jq 1.7.1-5 on Azure Linux 3.0 1.7.1-6; azl3 jq 1.7.1-6 on Azure Linux 3.0 1.7.1-6 or later.
Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it
Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS
jq is a command-line JSON processor. In 1.8.1 and earlier, jq accepts embedded NUL bytes in import paths at the jq-language level, but later resolves those paths through C string operations during module and data-file lookup. This creates a mismatch between the logical import string that policy or audit code may validate and the on-disk path that jq actually opens.
- Published
- May 11, 2026
- Updated
- Oct 26, 2026
- EPSS
- 0.1% · 4th percentile
- CWE
- CWE-20
Report tools
Action score
17
Monitor
Low priority for now.
- CVSS
- 17 / 40 · 4.4 / 10
- CISA KEV
- 0 / 30 · Not listed
- EPSS
- 0 / 30 · 0.1%
CISA SSVC decision
- Exploitation
- proof of concept
- Automatable
- no
- Technical impact
- partial
Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.
CNA vs NVD score
- NVD
- —
- CNA · GitHub_M
- 4.4
- NVD has not scored this yet; the score shown is the CNA’s.
The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.
Get told when this record changes
- Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
- No public exploit code on record
- A fix has been released
If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.
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Noroxi analysis
What does it mean in your environment?
The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.
We use this product, ask for helpAffected systems
Is your version affected?
Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.
| Vendor | Product | CPE |
|---|---|---|
| jqlang | jq | cpe:2.3:a:jqlang:jq |
Affected versions
NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.
- jqlang jqup to 1.8.1 inclusive
Versions reported by the vendor
Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (GitHub_M). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.
jqlang jq
- <= 1.8.1affected
Package-level exposure
OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alpine:v3.22 | jq | before 1.8.2-r0 | 1.8.2-r0 |
| Debian:12 | jq | before 1.6-2.1+deb12u2 | 1.6-2.1+deb12u2 |
| Debian:13 | jq | before 1.7.1-6+deb13u3 | 1.7.1-6+deb13u3 |
| Debian:14 | jq | before 1.8.1-6 | 1.8.1-6 |
| openSUSE:Leap 16.0 | jq | before 1.7.1-160000.5.1 | 1.7.1-160000.5.1 |
| openSUSE:Tumbleweed | jq | before 1.8.1-3.1 | 1.8.1-3.1 |
| Red Hat:hummingbird:1 | jq | before 0:1.8.2-0.1.hum1 | 0:1.8.2-0.1.hum1 |
| Red Hat:hummingbird:1 | jq-devel | before 0:1.8.2-0.1.hum1 | 0:1.8.2-0.1.hum1 |
| SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.3 | jq | before 1.7.1-150000.3.25.1 | 1.7.1-150000.3.25.1 |
| SUSE:Linux Micro 6.0 | jq | before 1.7.1-1.1 | 1.7.1-1.1 |
| SUSE:Linux Micro 6.1 | jq | before 1.7.1-slfo.1.1_5.1 | 1.7.1-slfo.1.1_5.1 |
| SUSE:Linux Micro 6.2 | jq | before 1.7.1-160000.5.1 | 1.7.1-160000.5.1 |
Same product
jqlang: all recordsOther highest-scoring records for the same primary product.
- CVE-2024-53427decNumberCopy in decNumber.c in jq through 1.7.1 does not properly consider that NaN is interpreted as numeric, which has a resultant stack-32Monitor
- CVE-2026-40164jq: Algorithmic complexity DoS via hardcoded MurmurHash3 seed30Monitor
- CVE-2026-32316jq: Integer overflow in jvp_string_append() allows Heap-based Buffer Overflow30Monitor
Published before and after this one in the same product
- ← EarlierCVE-2026-41257May 11, 2026 · jq: Signed-int overflow in `stack_reallocate` (jq VM stack)25Monitor
- ← EarlierCVE-2026-43894May 11, 2026 · jq: Wild stack write via signed-integer overflow in decNumber D2U() macro22Monitor
- Later →CVE-2026-43896May 11, 2026 · jq: Stack Overflow in Recursive Object Merge22Monitor
Remediation
Which version to upgrade to
Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.
| Product / package | Fixed version | Source |
|---|---|---|
| azl3 jq 1.7.1-5 on Azure Linux 3.0 | 1.7.1-6 · CBL-Mariner Releases | Microsoft (MSRC) |
| azl3 jq 1.7.1-6 on Azure Linux 3.0 | 1.7.1-6 · CBL-Mariner Releases | Microsoft (MSRC) |
| alpine:jq | 1.8.2-r0 · Alpine:v3.22 | Package registry (OSV) |
| debian:jq | 1.6-2.1+deb12u2 · Debian:12 | Package registry (OSV) |
| opensuse:jq | 1.8.1-3.1 · openSUSE:Tumbleweed | Package registry (OSV) |
| red hat:jq | 0:1.8.2-0.1.hum1 · Red Hat:hummingbird:1 | Package registry (OSV) |
| red hat:jq-devel | 0:1.8.2-0.1.hum1 · Red Hat:hummingbird:1 | Package registry (OSV) |
| suse:jq | 1.7.1-160000.5.1 · SUSE:Linux Micro 6.2 | Package registry (OSV) |
Exploit status
No known public exploit
No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.
Research context
For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.
Timeline
From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.
No dated events beyond publication.
FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).
Patch and commit links
Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.
No commit or PR link among the references.
Credits
All researchersFinders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.
No credits in the CNA record.
Variant candidates
Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.
- CVE-2026-3394827 days apartjq: Embedded-NUL Truncation in CLI JSON Input Path Causes Prefix-Only Validation of Malformed Input11Monitor
Chain candidates
An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.
—
Bug bounty scope
No known public program.
Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).
Technical details
Attack conditions
- Someone with local access to the system can trigger it.
- A low-privileged account is enough.
- No user action is required.
- No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
If successful
- Confidentiality
- low · data can be read
- Integrity
- low · data or configuration can be modified
- Availability
- none
- Attack vector
- Local
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality impact
- Low
- Integrity impact
- Low
- Availability impact
- None
Weakness class (CWE)
CWE-20 · Improper Input ValidationCVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N
nvd-secondary
Attack context
MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.
Attack patterns (CAPEC)
- Buffer Overflow via Environment VariablesCAPEC-10likelihood: High · High
- Server Side Include (SSI) InjectionCAPEC-101likelihood: High · High
- Cross Zone ScriptingCAPEC-104likelihood: Medium · High
- Command Line Execution through SQL InjectionCAPEC-108likelihood: Low · Very High
- Object Relational Mapping InjectionCAPEC-109likelihood: Low · High
- SQL Injection through SOAP Parameter TamperingCAPEC-110likelihood: High · Very High
- Double EncodingCAPEC-120likelihood: Low · Medium
- Subverting Environment Variable ValuesCAPEC-13likelihood: High · Very High
ATT&CK techniques
- Obfuscated Files or InformationT1027
- Masquerading: Invalid Code SignatureT1036.001
- Steal Web Session CookieT1539
- Subvert Trust Controls: Code SigningT1553.002
- Impair Defenses:Impair Command History LoggingT1562.003
- Hijack Execution Flow:Dynamic Linker HijackingT1574.006
- Hijack Execution Flow:Path Interception by PATH Environment VariableT1574.007
Change log
- Fix✗ → ✓
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