# CVE-2026-19264: Unauthenticated arbitrary file read via /uploads path traversal (URL-encoded separators) leading to instance takeover

> Unauthenticated attackers can read sensitive files via path traversal to steal secrets and forge admin sessions, leading to full instance takeover.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.3 (`CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 7 Aug 2026
- **Updated:** 24 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-2p7p-3c9x-rwxm

## What is CVE-2026-19264?

CVE-2026-19264 is a critical path traversal vulnerability in gitroomhq postiz-app, published on 7 Aug 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Postiz is an open-source social media scheduling tool. The route that serves locally stored media joins URL-supplied path segments onto the upload directory and streams the file without normalising the path or confining it to that directory, and the route requires no authentication. Raw dot-segments are collapsed before routing, but URL-encoded separators survive route matching and are decoded only once they reach the handler, restoring the traversal at the filesystem call. An unauthenticated remote attacker can therefore read any file readable by the application process, including the process environment, which exposes the JWT signing secret, the database connection string, and connected provider and billing secrets. Because session tokens are signed with that secret and carry no expiry, this allows forging a non-expiring session as any user, including an administrator, without a password.

Weakness: CWE-22 (Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-19264?


## How do I fix CVE-2026-19264?

No fix has been published for CVE-2026-19264 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2026-19264 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-19264 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Public exploit code:

- CVE-2026-19264 - Critical unauthenticated path traversal to full instance takeover in Postiz (< 2.22.1). Technical writeup: decode-order bypass, JWT_SECRET escalation, and analysis of the upstream fix. (github_poc): https://github.com/DarkLycn1976/CVE-2026-19264

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-19264 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-19264 is a critical path traversal vulnerability in gitroomhq postiz-app, published on 7 Aug 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-19264 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: gitroomhq postiz-app. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-19264/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-19264/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-19264
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-19264
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-19264

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-19264/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.