Metabase Zero-Day Exploited in Wild Allows Admin Access Without Authentication
Metabase warns an actively exploited zero-day (CVE-2026-72898, CVSS 10.0) grants unauthenticated admin access; Framework, n8n, and Kilo Code disclosed data exposure.
Metabase disclosed a maximum-severity SQL injection affecting versions x.58 through x.63 that lets unauthenticated attackers inject SQL via the /api/session/reset_password endpoint and gain administrator access to Metabase instances. Metabase Cloud was attacked, patches were released, and CISA added CVE-2026-72898 to the KEV catalog with a federal remediation deadline of August 14, 2026. Downstream victims include Framework (customer names, IPs, addresses, phone numbers, and emails accessed), n8n (136 customer records, five with bcrypt-hashed passwords), and Kilo Code (Slack access tokens). Wiz estimates roughly 13% of cloud environments run self-hosted Metabase, with about 2,500 instances internet-accessible.
- Workaround: block /api/session/reset_password, revoke sessions, review API keys, admin accounts, and database credentials.
- IoC pattern: POST /api/session/reset_password returning 400 followed by GET /api/user/current returning 200.
- Kilo Code said the Metabase incident ran about four hours on August 2, 2026, exposing Kilo Slackbot tokens.
- n8n also disclosed a historical 2023 bug that stored some cloud account passwords in plain text.
- Prior 2023 Metabase flaw CVE-2023-38646 enabled pre-auth RCE at CVSS 9.8.
Vulnerabilities mentionedAll →
| CVE | Vulnerability | CVSS | EPSS | Flags | Affected | Exposure | Published |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2023-38646 | Metabase open source before 0.46.6.1 and Metabase Enterprise before 1.46.6.1 allow attackers to execute arbitrary commands on the server, at the server's privil Metabase open source before 0.46.6.1 and Metabase Enterprise before 1.46.6.1 allow attackers to execute arbitrary commands on the server, at the server's privilege level. Authentication is not required for exploitation. The other fixed versions are 0.45.4.1, 1.45.4.1, 0.44.7.1, 1.44.7.1, 0.43.7.2, and 1.43.7.2. NVD description · AI analysis pending | 9.8 | 99% |
| — | ||
| CVE-2026-72898 | Unauthenticated SQL Injection in Metabase Grants Admin Access CVE-2026-72898 is a critical SQL injection flaw (CWE-89, CVSS 4.0 score of 10) in Metabase, a widely used open-source business intelligence platform. A remote, unauthenticated attacker can send crafted input to the '/reset_password' database endpoint to inject arbitrary SQL into the underlying database. Successful exploitation grants the attacker administrator access to the connected Metabase instance, with confidentiality, integrity, and availability impacts rated high in the CVSS 4.0 vector. Any organization running an affected Metabase instance, particularly one exposed to the internet, is at risk. The flaw is a zero-day being exploited in the wild, was added to CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2026-08-11, and carries a 94.2% EPSS probability of exploitation within 30 days (100th percentile). Do: Upgrade promptly to the fixed Metabase release identified in the vendor's security advisory (no version numbers were provided in the available data), as the flaw is being exploited in the wild and is on CISA's KEV list under BOD 26-04. Until patched, restrict internet access to Metabase and limit reachability of the '/reset_password' endpoint to trusted networks. Hunt for compromise by reviewing access logs for anomalous requests to the reset-password endpoint and checking for unexpected administrator accounts or changed admin credentials. | 10.0 | 94% | KEV PoC |
| large≈10k–50k internet-exposed Metabase instances (tens of thousands) |
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Metabase has warned that a maximum-severity security flaw impacting its business intelligence and data visualization software package has been exploited in the wild as a zero-day.
The vulnerability (CVSS score: 10.0), which does not carry a CVE identifier, allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to inject arbitrary SQL into the Metabase application database, enabling them to gain administrator access to the instance.
Armed with the elevated access, the attacker can change the application configuration, steal stored credentials for the connected databases, read any data accessible through those connections, and export data.
"We recently identified that Metabase Cloud was attacked by someone utilizing an unknown ('0-day') security vulnerability in versions 1.58 and above," Metabase said in an advisory.
Metabase Cloud instances have already been updated to the latest version. Users running self-hosted versions are advised to apply security patches released by Metabase with immediate effect. The following versions are affected -
- >= x.58.0, < x.58.23 (Fixed in x.58.24)
- >= x.59.0, < x.59.20 (Fixed in x.59.21)
- >= x.60.0, < x.60.16 (Fixed in x.60.17)
- >= x.61.0, < x.61.10 (Fixed in x.61.11)
- >= x.62.0, < x.62.8 (Fixed in x.62.9)
- >= x.63.0, < x.63.3 (Fixed in x.63.5)
As a temporary workaround until the fixes can be applied, it's advised to block the "/api/session/reset_password" endpoint. Once the update is complete, customers who have their "/api/session/reset_password" endpoint publicly accessible are advised to perform the following steps -
- Revoke all active user sessions by accessing the Metabase Application Database and deleting all rows in the core_session table
- Review API keys and delete any unrecognized keys
- Review administrator accounts for any unexpected changes
- Rotate credentials for any of the connected databases
- Review data warehouse logs for any sign of unauthorized access
- Review Metabase activity and query history for unexpected or unauthorized activity
Metabase has not shared any specifics about the malicious activity, but shared the following indicators of compromise (IoCs) -
- A call to "POST /api/session/reset_password" with a 400 status code
- This is followed by a call to "GET /api/user/current" with a 200 status code
"If you find that pattern in your application logs or in your Metabase server ingress logs, it is likely that your instance has been compromised," Metabase CEO Sameer Al-Sakran said.
One of the companies that has been affected is Framework. According to Engadget, the PC maker alerted all its customers that customer names, login IPs, addresses, phone numbers, and emails were accessed during the hack. It noted that no order or payment information was accessed.
Exactly three years ago, Metabase moved to address another "extremely severe" flaw (CVE-2023-38646, CVSS score: 9.8) that could have resulted in pre-authenticated remote code execution on affected installations.
Additional Victims Emerge
N8n, a popular workflow automation platform, disclosed on August 8, 2026, that an attacker obtained 136 customer records containing names and email addresses for both self-hosted and n8n Cloud users by leveraging the Metabase vulnerability.
"Our investigation confirmed that an unauthorized third party accessed and queried certain data available through n8n’s Metabase environment," it said in a post.
"Five of these records contained bcrypt-hashed passwords of n8n Cloud accounts, self-hosted passwords are never shared with n8n. Because the queries used returned a variable, non-deterministic set of rows each time they are run, we cannot determine which specific records were accessed."
Separately, n8n said its investigation also identified a historical bug that was previously fixed in April 2023 and caused a "small number of n8n Cloud account passwords to be stored in plain text."
Although there is no evidence to suggest that these records were accessed during the Metabase-related exploitation activity, the company said it has contacted all 25 account holders directly out of an abundance of caution.
N8n said it has rotated potentially affected credentials, rectified any users affected by the historical bug, and notified relevant data protection authorities of the matter.
Another company that was impacted by the Metabase zero-day attacks is Kilo Code, which said the "incident at Metabase occurred over a period of approximately 4 hours on August 2, 2026" and that it was alerted of the breach four days later.
"Our investigation so far has confirmed that the Kilo Slackbot was impacted and a small subset of Kilo users on that feature had their Slack access token exposed," it said. "Out of an abundance of caution, we invalidated all Kilo Slackbot authentication tokens for these users. Affected Kilo Slackbot users were contacted."
Flaw Now Tracked as CVE-2026-72898
The SQL injection vulnerability has been assigned the CVE identifier CVE-2026-72898 (CVSS score: 10.0). The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has added the flaw to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, requiring federal agencies to apply the fixes by August 14, 2026.
"Metabase allows a remote, unauthenticated attacker to inject arbitrary SQL via the '/reset_password' database endpoint and gain administrator access to the connected Metabase instance," a description for the flaw on CVE.org reads.
Google-owned Wiz said it observed that roughly 13% of cloud environments have self-hosted Metabase instances deployed, out of which approximately 25% are fully internet accessible. About 2,500 Metabase instances are estimated to be accessible over the internet.
(The story was updated after publication on August 11, 2026, to include the latest developments.)
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Text extracted automatically; images, tables and formatting may be missing. Original: https://thehackernews.com/2026/08/metabase-zero-day-exploited-in-wild.html