NVD / CVE Program· CNA apache

CVE-2026-58076: Apache Airflow: Unguarded import_string() of airflow_exc_ser / base_exc_ser exception nodes in BaseSerialization.deserialize enables DAG-author RCE on Scheduler

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 35/100)

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: 0.48% (FIRST EPSS).
Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it. A low-privileged account is enough. No user action is required. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
Fixed version: Apache Software Foundation Apache Airflow 3.3.1.

Low priority for now. Upgrade to Apache Software Foundation Apache Airflow 3.3.1 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

Apache Airflow's serialization layer reconstructed exception nodes by calling `import_string()` on a class name taken from the serialized blob and instantiating it with arguments from the same blob, with no restriction on what could be imported. An operator's `executor_config` reaches that branch, so a Dag author could place a value there that causes an arbitrary callable to be imported and invoked -- for example `subprocess.check_output`, or `builtins.eval` on the `builtins`-prefixed variant. The code runs in the **Scheduler**, which reconstructs serialized Dags in its normal loop with no request involved, and in the **API server**, on any authenticated read of the Dag such as `GET /api/v2/dags/{dag_id}/details`. Both are components the Airflow security model states must never execute Dag-author code, and both hold the metadata database credentials and the JWT signing secret. No non-default configuration is required. This is a **different sink from CVE-2026-33264**, which covered only the trigger branch of the same deserializer: deployments that upgraded in response to that advisory are still affected through the exception branch and must upgrade again. Users are advised to upgrade to apache-airflow 3.3.1 or later, which restricts the imported class to a subclass of `BaseException`.

HighCVSS 8.8 · v3.1—No exploit Fix available

Published: Aug 12, 2026
Updated: Nov 3, 2026
EPSS: 0.4% · 41th percentile
CWE: CWE-502

Report tools

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Action score

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS: 35 / 40 · 8.8 / 10
CISA KEV: 0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS: 0 / 30 · 0.4%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation: none
Automatable: no
Technical impact: total

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

CNA vs NVD score

NVD: 8.8
CNA · apache: 8.8; agree

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.

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Affected 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
apache	airflow	cpe:2.3:a:apache:airflow

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

apache airflow3.3.0 and later · before 3.3.1

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (apache). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

Apache Software Foundation Apache Airflow
- 3.0.0 and later · before 3.3.1affected · semver

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

Ecosystem	Package	Affected range	Fix
PyPI	apache-airflow	from 3.3.0 · before 3.3.1	3.3.1

Same product

apache: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

CVE-2020-13927The previous default setting for Airflow's Experimental API was to allow all API requests without authentication, but this poses security riKEV
99Now
CVE-2020-11978An issue was found in Apache Airflow versions 1.10.10 and below.KEV
95Now
CVE-2021-38540Apache Airflow: Variable Import endpoint missed authentication check
63This week

Published before and after this one in the same product

← EarlierCVE-2026-49487Jul 7, 2026 · Apache Airflow: Task-instance API exposes secrets in deferred trigger kwargs
26Monitor
← EarlierCVE-2026-54183Aug 12, 2026 · Apache Airflow: Airflow Variables were not masked in the UI for authenticated users
17Monitor
Later →CVE-2026-59242Aug 12, 2026 · Apache Airflow: Arbitrary airflow.* class instantiation on the API server via the XCom deserialize endpoint
21Monitor

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
Apache Software Foundation Apache Airflow	3.3.1	Vendor (CNA)
PyPI:apache-airflow	3.3.1	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.

EPSS, last 120 days

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.

apache/airflowPR 68511

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

Jan Kahmen (turingpoint), GitHub: @kah-jafinder
Jarek Potiukremediation developer

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

CVE-2026-3326436 days apartApache Airflow: DAG author RCE on webserver via unrestricted import_string() in BaseSerialization.deserialize()
39Monitor
CVE-2026-675870 days apartApache Airflow: DAG-author remote code execution on the Scheduler via a Serde `Callback` deserialization gadget
35Monitor
CVE-2026-4235972 days apartApache Airflow: Authenticated RCE via XCom PATCH endpoint — XComUpdateBody missing FORBIDDEN_XCOM_KEYS validator
35Monitor
CVE-2026-33858121 days apartApache Airflow: Unsafe Deserialization via Legacy Serialization Keys (__type/__var) Bypass in XCom API
35Monitor
CVE-2026-672600 days apartApache Airflow: DAG-author remote code execution on the Scheduler via awaiting_input next_kwargs deserialization
29Monitor
CVE-2026-4536072 days apartApache Airflow: Arbitrary import in custom deadline-reference deserialization
29Monitor

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

Anyone who can reach it over the internet 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: high · data can be read
Integrity: high · data or configuration can be modified
Availability: high · the service can be disrupted

Attack vector: Network
Attack complexity: Low
Privileges required: Low
User interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality impact: High
Integrity impact: High
Availability impact: High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-502 · Deserialization of Untrusted Data

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

nvd-primary

Root cause

Data received over the network is deserialized into the language’s native object format without verifying its source. Code paths inside the object can be triggered during deserialization.

The bug in code

The whole CWE-502 class

A representative example of this vulnerability class. Not the vendor's source code; it shows the faulty pattern and its fix.

Vulnerable

python

1payload = sock.recv(65536)
2job = pickle.loads(payload)

Fixed

python

1payload = sock.recv(65536)
2if not hmac.compare_digest(sign(payload), header_sig):
3    raise PermissionError("invalid signature")
4job = JobSchema.validate(json.loads(payload))