# CVE-2026-44298: Kimai: Arbitrary file read in invoice PDF renderer (admin)

> Admins can read arbitrary server files by uploading malicious PDF templates, exposing sensitive data to attackers with admin privileges.

- **Severity:** Medium 4.1 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:N/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 8 May 2026
- **Updated:** 8 May 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-h5fh-7hwr-97mw

## What is CVE-2026-44298?

CVE-2026-44298 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in kimai, published on 8 May 2026. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Kimai is an open-source time tracking application. From version 2.32.0 to before version 2.56.0, users with the role System-Admin (ROLE_SYSTE_ADMIN) and the permission upload_invoice_template can upload PDF invoice templates, which can call pdfContext.setOption('associated_files', ...) inside the sandboxed Twig render. This is forwarded to mPDF's SetAssociatedFiles(), whose writer calls file_get_contents($entry['path']) during PDF output and embeds the bytes as a FlateDecode stream in the PDF. Any file readable by the PHP worker is returned to the attacker inside the rendered invoice. This issue has been patched in version 2.56.0.

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

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-44298?

2 open source packages ship an affected version, including kimai/kimai. It affects 1 product.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `kimai/kimai` | Packagist | From 2.32.0 | 2.56 |
| `kimai/kimai` | Packagist | From 2.32.0 | 2.56 |

Products: Kimai Kimai.

## How do I fix CVE-2026-44298?

Upgrade kimai/kimai to 2.56 or later.

## Is CVE-2026-44298 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-44298 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in kimai

- [CVE-2020-19825](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-19825/): Cross-site Scripting in kimai/kimai (critical 9.6)
- [CVE-2023-53957](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-53957/): Kimai 1.30.10 SameSite Cookie Vulnerability Session Hijacking (high 8.5)
- [CVE-2021-43515](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-43515/): Improper Neutralization of Formula Elements in a CSV File in Kimai 2 (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2023-46245](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-46245/): Kimai (Authenticated) SSTI to RCE by Uploading a Malicious Twig File (high 7.2)
- [CVE-2026-23626](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-23626/): Kimai Vulnerable to Authenticated Server-Side Template Injection (SSTI) (medium 6.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-44298 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-44298 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in kimai, published on 8 May 2026. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-44298 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- kimai/kimai (Packagist): affected from 2.32.0; fixed in 2.56
- kimai/kimai (Packagist): affected from 2.32.0; fixed in 2.56

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-2026-44298/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-44298/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-44298
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-44298
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-44298

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-44298/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.