{"id":"CVE-2026-113649","kind":"vulnerability","aliases":["CVE-2026-113649","GHSA-5m22-7pfq-vp65"],"related":[],"title":"ApostropheCMS: Import API bypasses publication roles for protected content","description":"## Review scope and evidence limits\n\nPackage: @apostrophecms/import-export, version 3.7.0.\n\nRelease tag reviewed: @apostrophecms/import-export@3.7.0, commit 9500b8b0e1d630d5e07fbb5fd2c25ed0943845ce (September 30, 2026).\n\nCurrent main reviewed: 5ce3732be0ebdebb4db0f8ef160c81e8671157e6.\n\nThe importer, gzip extractor, import permission gate, and core permission implementation have no differences between that release tag and the reviewed main. This follow-up is a static remediation review. We have not repeated the original end-to-end reproductions against the latest release or tested a deployed site. Current exploitability and impact therefore still require maintainer validation; the observations below establish that the reported security checks remain absent in public source. The original emailed PDF contains the original reproduction material. \n\n## Import API bypasses publication roles for protected content\n\nThe import gate in canImportOrExport() checks the type's import configuration and view permission. The write helpers then call document-manager insert/update directly, including operations on published variants. We did not find the normal publish permission check or beforePublish transition in these helpers. Core permissions intentionally distinguish editRole and publishRole, and the ordinary publication lifecycle enforces that distinction.\n\nThe reported security boundary is a content type that an editor may edit but whose publication is reserved for a stronger role. Direct public-state changes through import must enforce the same publication authority. The original report describes unauthorized creation, replacement, or removal of published content under that configuration.\n\nSuggested remediation: centralize authorization for import writes; require publish permission for every non-autopublished published variant, authorize each concrete target, and preflight the complete import before persistent changes. Preserve authorized draft imports and the intended behavior of autopublished types.\n\nSource references:\n- [Import write helpers](https://github.com/apostrophecms/apostrophe/blob/5ce3732be0ebdebb4db0f8ef160c81e8671157e6/packages/import-export/lib/methods/import.js)\n- [Import permission gate](https://github.com/apostrophecms/apostrophe/blob/5ce3732be0ebdebb4db0f8ef160c81e8671157e6/packages/import-export/lib/methods/index.js)\n- [Core role distinctions](https://github.com/apostrophecms/apostrophe/blob/5ce3732be0ebdebb4db0f8ef160c81e8671157e6/packages/apostrophe/modules/%40apostrophecms/permission/index.js)\n- [Core insert/update/publication permission hooks](https://github.com/apostrophecms/apostrophe/blob/5ce3732be0ebdebb4db0f8ef160c81e8671157e6/packages/apostrophe/modules/%40apostrophecms/doc/index.js)\n\n## Coordination\n\nVivek R / Winfunc\nOriginal reporting team: Mufeed VH / Winfunc","summary":"The ApostropheCMS Import API writes published variants of content directly without checking the publish permission, so a user who can only edit a content type can create, replace, or remove its published content when publication is restricted to a stronger role. An attacker with import access gets public-state changes they should not be allowed to make.","severity":"medium","cvss":6.5,"epss":0.002199999988079071,"exploited":false,"exploited_at":null,"products":[{"name":"@apostrophecms/import-export","fixed":["3.7.1"],"affected":"< 3.7.1","ecosystem":"npm"},{"name":"apostrophe","fixed":["4.34.0"],"affected":"< 4.34.0","ecosystem":"npm"}],"ecosystems":["npm"],"tags":["apostrophecms","cms","cwe-862","node","npm","package"],"not_affected_if":["default-config","no-custom-publish-role","no-import-export-usage"],"how_to_check":"Check whether @apostrophecms/import-export in your package.json or lockfile is below 3.7.1, and whether apostrophe is below 4.34.0.\nIf you use import, check whether any content type sets publishRole stricter than editRole and whether non-admin users have import access.","fix":"Upgrade @apostrophecms/import-export to 3.7.1 and apostrophe to 4.34.0.\nUntil then, restrict import/export permissions to trusted admins only.","status":"open","published_at":"2026-10-20T17:17:35+00:00","first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T19:11:32+00:00","triaged_at":"2026-10-23T19:57:43+00:00","updated_at":"2026-10-23T21:57:20+00:00","category":"package","confidence":0.7,"triage":{"at":"2026-10-23T19:57:43Z","model":"claude-haiku-5-5","output":{"fix":"Upgrade @apostrophecms/import-export to 3.7.1 and apostrophe to 4.34.0.\nUntil then, restrict import/export permissions to trusted admins only.","summary":"The ApostropheCMS Import API writes published variants of content directly without checking the publish permission, so a user who can only edit a content type can create, replace, or remove its published content when publication is restricted to a stronger role. An attacker with import access gets public-state changes they should not be allowed to make.","category":"package","who_cares":["apostrophecms","npm","node","cms"],"confidence":0.7,"analyst_note":"Sources give versions and a static review but no reproduction or exploit detail; confirm the exact publish-permission behavior in the GHSA advisory at https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-5m22-7pfq-vp65 and whether the default config is affected.","how_to_check":"Check whether @apostrophecms/import-export in your package.json or lockfile is below 3.7.1, and whether apostrophe is below 4.34.0.\nIf you use import, check whether any content type sets publishRole stricter than editRole and whether non-admin users have import access.\nunknown","needs_analyst":true,"not_affected_if":["no-import-export-usage","no-custom-publish-role","default-config"],"severity_if_unknown":"medium"},"cost_usd":0.000526,"input_tokens":2984,"output_tokens":456,"severity_before":"medium"},"analyst_status":null,"analyst_note":null,"search":"'-113649':12A,20A '-2026':11A,19A '-862':26B '/apostrophecms/apostrophe/blob/5ce3732be0ebdebb4db0f8ef160c81e8671157e6/packages/apostrophe/modules/%40apostrophecms/doc/index.js)':377C '/apostrophecms/apostrophe/blob/5ce3732be0ebdebb4db0f8ef160c81e8671157e6/packages/apostrophe/modules/%40apostrophecms/permission/index.js)':370C '/apostrophecms/apostrophe/blob/5ce3732be0ebdebb4db0f8ef160c81e8671157e6/packages/import-export/lib/methods/import.js)':358C '/apostrophecms/apostrophe/blob/5ce3732be0ebdebb4db0f8ef160c81e8671157e6/packages/import-export/lib/methods/index.js)':364C '2026':106C '3.7.0':96C,101C '30':105C '5ce3732be0ebdebb4db0f8ef160c81e8671157e6':110C '5m22':15A '7pfq':16A 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'write':34B,217C,317C,354C","nicknames":[],"mitigations":[],"who_affected":null,"tier":"C","verified":{},"analyst_revisit_at":null,"first_public_at":"2026-10-20T17:17:35+00:00","kev":null,"cvss_vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N","cvss_by":"GitHub","poc_count":0,"sources":[{"source":"ghsa","external_id":"GHSA-5m22-7pfq-vp65","url":"https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-5m22-7pfq-vp65","severity":"medium","published_at":"2026-10-21T17:03:03+00:00","modified_at":"2026-10-21T17:03:05+00:00","first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T19:11:32+00:00","fetched_at":"2026-10-23T19:11:32+00:00","note":null},{"source":"nvd","external_id":"CVE-2026-113649","url":"https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-113649","severity":null,"published_at":"2026-10-20T17:17:35+00:00","modified_at":"2026-10-23T02:16:56+00:00","first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T21:57:20+00:00","fetched_at":"2026-10-23T22:28:58+00:00","note":null}],"documents":[],"notice":"Free to read at a human pace. An API with keys and an MCP server are in preparation; early access: hello@infrastack.ai"}