CVE-2026-42589
Gotenberg is a Docker-powered stateless API for PDF files. Prior to 8.31.0, Gotenberg's /forms/pdfengines/metadata/write
Gotenberg is a Docker-powered stateless API for PDF files. Prior to 8.31.0, Gotenberg's /forms/pdfengines/metadata/write HTTP endpoint accepts a JSON metadata object and passes its keys directly to ExifTool via the go-exiftool library. No validation is performed on key characters.
A \n embedded in a JSON key splits the ExifTool stdin stream into a new argument line, allowing an attacker to inject arbitrary ExifTool flags, including -if, which evaluates Perl expressions. This achieves unauthenticated OS command execution in a single HTTP request. The response is HTTP 200 with a valid PDF, making the attack transparent to basic monitoring.
This vulnerability is fixed in 8.31.0.
CRITICAL · CVSS 9.8
EPSS 0.08768
Act now
- EPSS percentile: top 7% of all CVEs by exploitation likelihood
- Public exploit or PoC is available
- SSVC automatable: yes - attacks can be scripted at scale
- CVSS base score ≥ 7.0
Sigma rules0
YARA rules0