---
id: "CVE-2026-113662"
kind: "vulnerability"
aliases: ["CVE-2026-113662", "GHSA-jqw5-w6h3-44g6"]
title: "ApostropheCMS import-export: NoSQL injection via update-key value lets a crafted import match and overwrite an unidentified document"
severity: "medium"
cvss: 5.400000095367432
epss: 0.003000000026077032
exploited: false
status: "open"
category: "package"
products: [{"name": "@apostrophecms/import-export", "fixed": ["3.7.0"], "affected": "< 3.7.0", "ecosystem": "npm"}]
ecosystems: ["npm"]
tags: ["apostrophecms", "cms", "cwe-284", "cwe-943", "node.js", "package"]
not_affected_if: ["unknown"]
published_at: "2026-10-20T18:17:19+00:00"
first_seen_at: "2026-10-23T19:11:32+00:00"
updated_at: "2026-10-23T21:57:21+00:00"
sources: [{"source": "ghsa", "url": "https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-jqw5-w6h3-44g6", "first_seen_at": "2026-10-23T19:11:32+00:00"}, {"source": "nvd", "url": "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-113662", "first_seen_at": "2026-10-23T21:57:21+00:00"}]
---

# ApostropheCMS import-export: NoSQL injection via update-key value lets a crafted import match and overwrite an unidentified document

The @apostrophecms/import-export package lets an archive's update-key field be used as a raw MongoDB query value, so a crafted operator object like { $ne: null } can match and overwrite an existing document the archive author did not identify. An attacker with a contributor-level import session can overwrite content in existing documents they have edit rights on.

_Summary, check and fix written by a model from the sources; labelled as such._

## Affected

- npm:@apostrophecms/import-export affected < 3.7.0 fixed 3.7.0

## How to check

Check the installed version: npm ls @apostrophecms/import-export
Affected if the version is below 3.7.0.

## Fix

Upgrade @apostrophecms/import-export to 3.7.0 or later.

## Timeline

- 2026-10-23T19:11:32+00:00 ghsa https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-jqw5-w6h3-44g6
- 2026-10-23T21:57:21+00:00 nvd https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-113662

## From the sources

## Summary

`@apostrophecms/import-export`'s update-by-key feature lets an imported
document carry a `<field>:key` property (for example `slug:key`) whose
value is used to find an existing document to update instead of inserting
a new one. `getUpdateKey()`/`insertOrUpdateDocWithKey()`
(`lib/methods/import.js`) use that value directly as a MongoDB query value
with no laundering:

```js
const matchingDraftPromise = manager.findForEditing(
  req.clone({ mode: 'draft' }),
  {
    aposMode: 'draft',
    [updateField]: doc[updateKey]
  }).toObject();
```

Archive documents are parsed with EJSON (see `lib/formats/gzip.js`), which
revives objects such as `{ $ne: null }` as live values, the same untrusted
data source and revival mechanism already fixed once in this module for
`findSingletonAposDocId`/`findParkedAposDocId` in GHSA-79qf-vqgc-7xx3. That
fix did not touch `insertOrUpdateDocWithKey`, so the identical class of bug
survives here: a crafted `"slug:key": { "$ne": null }` entry in an
archive's `aposDocs.json` makes the import match (and then update) an
existing document the archive's author never actually identified, instead
of failing to find a match.

## Impact

Reaching this requires only an authenticated session with import access to
the target type (the built-in contributor role holds this, matching the
precondition of GHSA-79qf-vqgc-7xx3), and no admin interaction. Because the
match uses a MongoDB operator instead of an exact value, it is not limited
to a document the importer already knows the identifying field of: any
existing document the importer has generic edit rights on and that
satisfies the operator (which `{ $ne: null }` trivially does for any doc
with a non-null value in that field) is a candidate, and Apostrophe's
`findForEditing` permission filter, not the update-key logic, is the only
thing narrowing which document actually gets matched and overwritten.

Live-verified: a contributor-role request importing a document containing
`"slug:key": { "$ne": null }` had its content applied to an existing,
unrelated draft article, overwriting its title, while the importer never
specified that article's real slug.

## Affected versions

Confirmed on `main` branch HEAD as of 2026-09-04,
`packages/import-export/lib/methods/import.js`.

## Suggested fix

Launder `doc[updateKey]` to a plain string (mirroring the fix already
applied to `type`/`aposLocale`/`parkedId` in GHSA-79qf-vqgc-7xx3) before
using it as a query value, and fall back to the insert path when it is not
a usable string.

---

_Free to read at a human pace. An API with keys and an MCP server are in preparation; early access: hello@infrastack.ai_