Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
OpenCATS has a database injection flaw that a logged-in user could use to read sensitive recruitment data. The issue is in a sorting parameter used by the DataGrid pager. Public exploit references exist, but the bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or confirmed active exploitation.
Executive priority
Handle as a high-priority confidentiality issue. The likely business impact is exposure of applicant, customer, or operational database records by an authenticated user. Move quickly on inventory, access restriction, and vendor-confirmed remediation, especially for externally reachable systems.
Technical view
CVE-2026-49489 is CWE-89 SQL injection in OpenCATS through 0.9.7.4, affecting sortDirection in ajax/getDataGridPager.php. The reported impact is authenticated, time-based blind extraction of database contents. CVSS 3.1 is 8.5 with low complexity, low privileges, no user interaction, changed scope, high confidentiality impact, and low availability impact.
Likely exposure
Likely exposed systems are OpenCATS deployments through 0.9.7.4 where untrusted or broadly provisioned users can authenticate. Internet-facing login portals, shared staffing workflows, and weak account lifecycle controls increase business risk because applicant and hiring data may be stored in the database.
Exploitation context
The source bundle cites Packet Storm and Exploit DB references tagged as exploit, so public exploitation material appears to exist. It does not cite KEV or another source confirming active exploitation in the wild. Treat this as practical risk for any reachable authenticated OpenCATS instance.
Researcher notes
The affected metadata in the bundle is partly inconsistent: the description says through 0.9.7.4, while the affected version entry lists version 0 with defaultStatus unaffected. Use the advisory and CVE record to clarify exact version scope before asserting exposure.
Mitigation direction
- Review the OpenCATS GHSA advisory for fixed versions or official workarounds.
- Restrict OpenCATS access to trusted networks and necessary users only.
- Remove or disable stale user accounts with OpenCATS access.
- Increase monitoring for abnormal DataGrid pager requests.
- Prioritize upgrade or mitigation before expanding external access.
Validation and detection
- Inventory OpenCATS instances and confirm whether versions are through 0.9.7.4.
- Check whether ajax/getDataGridPager.php is reachable after authentication.
- Review logs for unusual sortDirection values or delayed responses.
- Confirm whether any OpenCATS login is Internet-facing.
- Validate remediation against vendor guidance, not custom assumptions.
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-89: Database access and collection lookup
Injection into data stores can inform collection, data access, and exfiltration detection reviews. 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 lookupDatabase behavior lookup
The CVE wording references database injection or access, so collection and exfiltration review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2026-49489 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
- 8.5 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:L
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.
SSVC decision data
CVSS vector scores
2 official scoresWe 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:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:L3.14.7VulnCheckCVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:L/SC:H/SI:N/SA:L——VulnCheckVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 4.0 score
8.4HighVector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:L/SC:H/SI:N/SA:L
Base CVSS 3.1 score
8.5HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:L
Vulnerability timeline
Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.
- CVE reservedCVE Program
The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.
- CVE publishedCVE Program
The CVE record was published.
- CVE updatedCVE Program
The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.
ADP provider summaries
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- GHSA Advisory GHSA-8mc8-5gw6-c7w4CVE reference, VulnCheck · vendor-advisory
- Packet Storm AdvisoryCVE reference, VulnCheck · exploit
- Exploit DB AdvisoryCVE reference, VulnCheck · exploit
- VulnCheck Advisory: OpenCATS - SQL Injection in DataGrid sortDirection ParameterCVE reference, VulnCheck · third-party-advisory
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 an SQL Command ('SQL Injection')
Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command ('SQL Injection') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.