CVE-2026-22599: Strapi Vulnerable to SQL Injection in Content Type Builder

Should you act?

Critical, preconditions apply

Severe if exploited, but exploitation needs conditions that may not apply to you. This signal is computed from CISA KEV, EPSS and CVSS data; it is not an editorial verdict.

• No confirmed exploitation. It is not in CISA’s KEV catalog and CISA’s SSVC assessment records no known exploitation. That can change quickly after a public write-up; re-check if you are affected.
• EPSS 1.2%, percentile 67: FIRST’s model estimates a 1.2% chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 67% of all scored CVEs (moderate). EPSS is a probability, not a verdict.
• Needs an account (high (admin)). Exposure depends on who can log in.
• Only applies if your dependency tree includes @strapi/content-type-builder (npm) >= 5.0.0, < 5.33.2, fixed in 5.33.2; @strapi/plugin-content-type-builder (npm) >= 4.0.0, < 4.26.1, fixed in 4.26.1. Check your lockfile, including transitive dependencies.

What it is

Strapi is an open source headless content management system. In versions on the 4.x branch prior to 4.26.1 and on the 5.x branch prior to 5.33.2, a database-query injection vulnerability existed in the Strapi Content-Type Builder write API. An authenticated administrator could inject arbitrary database statements through the column.defaultTo attribute when creating or modifying a content type. Setting defaultTo as a tuple [value, { isRaw: true }] caused the value to be passed directly into Knex's db.connection.raw() during schema migration without sanitization, allowing arbitrary statement execution at the database layer. Depending on the database engine, this enabled arbitrary file read via database utility functions, denial of service via forced server crash on schema-migration error, and on engines that permit external program execution, remote code execution against the database server. The patch in versions 4.26.1 and 5.33.2 addresses this by restricting all Content-Type Builder write APIs to development mode only. Production deployments running v5.33.2 or later return 404 for requests against /content-type-builder/content-types and related endpoints, removing the network-reachable attack surface entirely.

From the GitHub advisory

Summary of CVE-2026-22599 Vulnerability Details

- CVE: CVE-2026-22599 - CVSS v3.1 Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:H/SI:H/SA:N (9.3 — Critical) - Affected Versions: @strapi/content-type-builder =5.33.2 (v5) or >=4.26.1 (v4)

Description of CVE-2026-22599

A database-query injection vulnerability existed in the Strapi Content-Type Builder write API. An authenticated administrator could inject arbitrary database statements through the column.defaultTo attribute when creating or modifying a content type. Setting defaultTo as a tuple [value, { isRaw: true }] caused the value to be passed directly into Knex's db.connection.raw() during schema migration without sanitization, allowing arbitrary statement execution at the database layer. Depending on the database engine, this enabled arbitrary file read via database utility functions, denial of service via forced server crash on schema-migration error, and on engines that permit external program execution, remote code execution against the database server.

The patch addresses this by restricting all Content-Type Builder write APIs to development mode only. Production deployments running v5.33.2 or later return 404 for requests against /content-type-builder/content-types and related endpoints, removing the network-reachable attack surface entirely.

Weakness type: CWE-89.

Product: @strapi/content-type-builder (npm) · Assigned by: GitHub_M · Published: 2026-05-14

Affected and fixed versions

Severity scores

• Attack vector: network (remotely reachable)
• Attack complexity: low
• Attack requirements: none
• Privileges required: high (admin)
• User interaction: none

CVSS measures how bad a flaw is if exploited, not how likely exploitation is. Read it next to the exploitation data below.

Exploitation and urgency

• CISA KEV: not listed (no confirmed in-the-wild exploitation known to CISA).
• CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation none, automatable no, technical impact total.
• FIRST EPSS (model of 2026-10-21): 1.18% probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 67.

Timeline

• 2026-05-13 — GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-3xcq-8mjw-h6mx published (critical)
• 2026-05-14 — CVE record last updated
• 2026-05-14 — CVE record published by GitHub_M

Sources and references

Original sources first. Version and fix details should always be confirmed against the vendor or project advisory.

Vulnerability records

1. GitHub Advisory GHSA-3xcq-8mjw-h6mx github.com
2. CVE.org record CVE-2026-22599 cve.org
3. NVD entry CVE-2026-22599 nvd.nist.gov

Other references from the CVE record and advisory

1. github.com github.com
2. github.com github.com
3. github.com github.com

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