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CVE-2026-121265SQL-Abstract SQL injection

High priorityCritical9.8EPSS not scored yet

CVE-2026-121265 is a SQL injection in SQL-Abstract, rated critical (9.8 on CVSS 3.1).

Why this priority: Critical, and reachable over the network without an account.

Published · Updated · NVD status: Received

What it is

Input is pasted into a database query, so an attacker can rewrite the query to read or change data.

How it is reached

An attacker can exploit it over the network, without an account, and nobody has to click anything.

What an attacker gains

A successful attack can read the data it protects, change data or behaviour and take it offline. In practice, this kind of flaw lets an attacker read or change records in the data store behind the application.

Is it being exploited?

There is no public report of exploitation yet. It can be exploited automatically, at scale.

What to do

  1. Upgrade SQL-Abstract to 2.000003 or later.
  2. Until it is patched, keep it off the internet or behind a VPN, allowlist or authenticating proxy.

Description from NVD

SQL::Abstract versions before 2.000003 for Perl allow SQL injection via an arrayref column value in insert and update.

With the array_datatypes option off, which is the default, insert(), update() and values() treat an arrayref column value as literal SQL. Its first element goes into the SQL text unescaped and the rest become bind values. A JSON array, or a repeated form field decoded as an arrayref, is such a value.

An application that passes request data as column values to insert or update with the default options allows SQL injection.

Releases before 2.000003 also treat an arrayref in generate() as literal SQL, including through AUTOLOAD when allow_autoload is on, whatever array_datatypes is set to.

What this means for your architecture.

A CVE names a product. Whether it matters depends on where that product sits in your systems: what reaches it, which trust boundary it guards and what it can reach once compromised. Veriom maps your components, their relationships and your trust boundaries from your code, cloud and delivery evidence, so you can see where a component like this sits. The radar itself does not look at your systems.

Components it touches

  • Services that build database or directory queries. The flaw sits between the application and its data store.
  • Databases. The flaw sits between the application and its data store.

Trust boundaries in play

  • Internet-facing entry points. No account is needed. Any instance reachable from outside your perimeter, through a load balancer, gateway, VPN or exposed admin port, is in scope.
  • Between the application and its data store. An attacker who crosses it can read or change records in the data store behind the application.

Questions to answer about your own systems

  • Where does SQL-Abstract run in your systems, and at which version?
  • Which of those instances can be reached from the internet or partner networks?
  • What can it reach once compromised: which data stores, secrets and services?

Sources

  • CVE records and CVSS scores from the NVD CVE API. This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.
  • Exploitation status from CISA’s Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.
  • Exploit likelihood from FIRST’s Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS), refreshed daily.
  • Explanations are written by Veriom from fixed templates over each record’s data, not by a person reviewing each CVE. Descriptions are quoted from the records as published.