---
id: "CVE-2026-86468"
page: "https://infrastack.ai/live/CVE-2026-86468"
kind: "vulnerability"
aliases: ["CVE-2026-86468"]
title: "Apache Airflow: CLI audit log leaks some secrets in cleartext"
severity: "medium"
cvss: null
epss: null
exploited: false
status: "open"
category: "package"
products: []
ecosystems: []
tags: ["apache-airflow", "package", "python", "self-hosted"]
not_affected_if: ["audit-events-restricted", "no-cli-secret-args"]
published_at: "2026-11-09T10:17:11+00:00"
first_seen_at: "2026-11-09T10:25:50+00:00"
updated_at: "2026-11-09T10:26:33+00:00"
sources: [{"source": "nvd", "url": "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-86468", "first_seen_at": "2026-11-09T10:25:50+00:00"}]
exploit_sources: []
---

# Apache Airflow: CLI audit log leaks some secrets in cleartext

Link for people: https://infrastack.ai/live/CVE-2026-86468 (this .md is for agents)

Some Airflow CLI command shapes, such as Variable commands with a trailing --description, --conn-extra, and the inline --password of keycloak-auth-manager commands, are logged without masking their secrets. A user who can read audit events but is denied Variable and Connection access can read those values through the event-log API.

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

## How to check

- Check the installed version with `airflow version` and compare it with the fixed version below.
- Search audit-log entries for CLI commands containing `--description`, `--conn-extra` or `--password` to see whether cleartext secrets were recorded.
- Review which roles can read audit events through the event-log API.

## Fix

- apache-airflow: upgrade to `3.4.0` or later.
- Audit-log entries written before the upgrade keep cleartext values: purge the affected entries and rotate the secrets they contain.

## Timeline

- 2026-11-09T10:25:50+00:00 nvd https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-86468

## From the sources

Apache Airflow's CLI records its arguments in the audit log but masks secrets by argument position, so some supported command shapes leave secrets in cleartext, for example a trailing `--description` on Variable commands, `--conn-extra`, and the inline `--password` of `airflow keycloak-auth-manager` commands. A user who can read audit events but is denied Variable and Connection access can retrieve those values through the event-log API.

Users of apache-airflow are recommended to upgrade to 3.4.0 or later. Audit-log entries written before the upgrade keep the cleartext values: purge the affected entries and rotate the secrets they contain.

---

_Free to read, with fair use of about 60 pages a minute. For higher limits or API access: sales@infrastack.ai_