Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-26202

Path Traversal in Kaleidos Penpot ≤ 2.13.2

Public PoCPath Traversal
Published
19 February 2026
Modified
20 February 2026
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 7.5
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
EPSS Score 0.0044 36th percentile
Risk Priority 57 floored blend · peak EPSS

CVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.

Summary

CVE-2026-26202 is a high-severity Path Traversal (CWE-22) vulnerability in Kaleidos Penpot. Its CVSS base score is 7.5 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Data from Local System (T1005); ranked at the 36th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to AC-3 (Access Enforcement) and SI-10 (Information Input Validation) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

CVE-2026-26202 is an arbitrary file read vulnerability in Penpot, an open-source design tool for design and code collaboration. In versions prior to 2.13.2, the `create-font-variant` RPC endpoint allows an authenticated user to supply a local file path, such as `/etc/passwd`, as a font data chunk. This causes the file contents to be stored and retrievable as a "font" asset, enabling unauthorized access to files on the host filesystem that are readable by the Penpot backend process. The issue is classified under CWE-22 (Path Traversal) and CWE-73 (External Control of File Name or Path), with a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N).

Any authenticated user with team edit permissions can exploit this vulnerability remotely over the network with low complexity. Attackers can read sensitive system files, application secrets, database credentials, and private keys accessible to the Penpot process. In containerized deployments, the impact is confined to the container's filesystem, though environment variables, mounted secrets, and application configurations remain exposed, potentially facilitating further server compromise.

Penpot version 2.13.2 patches the vulnerability. The fix is detailed in the commit at https://github.com/penpot/penpot/commit/06e5825c8a0209889966a4eb5152efd6ff108626, and further information is available in the security advisory at https://github.com/penpot/penpot/security/advisories/GHSA-xp3f-g8rq-9px2. Security practitioners should upgrade to the patched version and review access controls for team edit permissions.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

Penpot is an open-source design tool for design and code collaboration. Prior to version 2.13.2, an authenticated user can read arbitrary files from the server by supplying a local file path (e.g. `/etc/passwd`) as a font data chunk in the…

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`create-font-variant` RPC endpoint, resulting in the file contents being stored and retrievable as a "font" asset. This is an arbitrary file read vulnerability. Any authenticated user with team edit permissions can read arbitrary files accessible to the Penpot backend process on the host filesystem. This can lead to exposure of sensitive system files, application secrets, database credentials, and private keys, potentially enabling further compromise of the server. In containerized deployments, the blast radius may be limited to the container filesystem, but environment variables, mounted secrets, and application configuration are still at risk. Version 2.13.2 contains a patch for the issue.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1005 Data from Local System Collection
Adversaries may search local system sources, such as file systems, configuration files, local databases, virtual machine files, or process memory, to find files of interest and sensitive data prior to Exfiltration.
T1083 File and Directory Discovery Discovery
Adversaries may enumerate files and directories or may search in specific locations of a host or network share for certain information within a file system.
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
T1574.007 Path Interception by PATH Environment Variable Stealth
Adversaries may execute their own malicious payloads by hijacking environment variables used to load libraries.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2026-30240Shared CWE-22, CWE-73
CVE-2025-66292Shared CWE-22, CWE-73
CVE-2026-35593Shared CWE-22, CWE-73
CVE-2026-30282Shared CWE-22, CWE-73
CVE-2026-41412Shared CWE-22, CWE-73
CVE-2026-30893Shared CWE-22, CWE-73
CVE-2026-46402Shared CWE-22, CWE-73
CVE-2026-30940Shared CWE-22, CWE-73
CVE-2026-33645Shared CWE-22, CWE-73
CVE-2026-39378Shared CWE-22, CWE-73

Affected Assets

kaleidos
penpot
≤ 2.13.2

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

—

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

—

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

—

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V5.3.2

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

Enforces the intended directory access authorizations that path traversal would otherwise bypass.

Input validation directly neutralizes special path elements before pathname construction occurs.

Least privilege reduces the impact of any unauthorized file access obtained via traversal.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 full match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices include input validation and path sanitization that eliminate this weakness.

PR.AA-05 mostly match
prevents

Least-privilege file authorization directly limits damage from externally controlled paths.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Patching/maintenance can remediate known path-traversal flaws in deployed software (partial prevention of exploitability) but does nothing to stop the coding defect from being introduced in the first place.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

finds

Security testing in development catches path traversal via static/dynamic analysis.

prevents

Secure SDLC mandates input validation and path sanitization that directly prevent path traversal.

prevents

Application security requirements include rules for safe file handling and canonicalization.

prevents

Secure architecture principles require least-privilege file access and directory isolation.

prevents

Secure coding standards explicitly forbid unsafe path construction and mandate safe APIs.

mitigates

Information access restriction limits which files an application may read or write.

References