Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2026-26938 affects Elastic Kibana Workflows in version 9.3.0. A user with the workflow execution privilege could abuse template handling to read files from the Kibana server or make server-side network requests. This is high risk where Kibana can reach sensitive internal services.
Executive priority
Prioritize remediation for internet-accessible or high-trust Kibana deployments. The business concern is data exposure from the Kibana host and possible access to internal services. Treat as urgent if Kibana can reach sensitive networks or secrets.
Technical view
The issue is CWE-1336 in Kibana Workflows template processing, enabling code injection outcomes including arbitrary file read and SSRF. The CVE description requires an authenticated user with workflowsManagement:executeWorkflow. The provided CVSS vector lists PR:N, which conflicts with that privilege requirement.
Likely exposure
Exposure is likely limited to Elastic Kibana 9.3.0 deployments using Workflows where users or service accounts have workflowsManagement:executeWorkflow. Risk increases if Kibana has broad filesystem access or network reachability to internal services.
Exploitation context
No active exploitation is stated in the provided sources, and the CVE is not marked KEV. Exploitation requires access to execute workflows according to the CVE description, but successful abuse could expose local files or internal network resources reachable by Kibana.
Researcher notes
Key scope is Kibana 9.3.0. Default status is listed as unaffected for other versions in the CVE data. The privilege requirement and CVSS PR:N field appear inconsistent; validate against Elastic’s advisory before risk scoring internally.
Mitigation direction
- Identify any Kibana 9.3.0 instances.
- Review Elastic ESA-2026-17 and apply the vendor-recommended security update.
- Restrict workflowsManagement:executeWorkflow to trusted users only.
- Limit Kibana server egress to necessary destinations.
- Reduce sensitive file access for the Kibana service account.
Validation and detection
- Confirm Kibana version across all environments.
- List users and roles with workflowsManagement:executeWorkflow.
- Check whether Workflows is enabled and in use.
- Review Kibana logs for unusual workflow executions.
- Review egress logs for unexpected requests from Kibana.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-1336: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCloud metadata behavior lookup
The CVE wording references SSRF or metadata access, so cloud discovery and credential material review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2026-26938 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 8.6 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N3.94Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
8.6HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://discuss.elastic.co/t/kibana-9-3-1-security-update-esa-2026-17/385253CVE reference
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Improper Neutralization of Special Elements Used in a Template Engine
Improper Neutralization of Special Elements Used in a Template Engine represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.