CVE-2026-22738 is a critical-severity (CVSS 9.8) Expression Language Injection vulnerability in org.springframework.ai:spring-ai-vector-store. 1 public exploit or proof-of-concept reference is indexed, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for org.springframework.ai:spring-ai-vector-store — see the affected versions and patch details below.
SpEL Injection via Unescaped Filter Key in SimpleVectorStore Leads to Remote Code Execution
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- CISA assesses this as automatable — exploitation doesn’t require manual, per-target effort, which raises the odds of mass scanning and opportunistic attacks.
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
- CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2026-22738.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
Where this sits among everything scored
Real-World Exposure
org.springframework.ai:spring-ai-vector-store☕org.springframework.ai:spring-ai-vector-storeReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Maven packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
In Spring AI, a SpEL injection vulnerability exists in SimpleVectorStore when a user-supplied value is used as a filter expression key. A malicious actor could exploit this to execute arbitrary code. Only applications that use SimpleVectorStore and pass user-supplied input as a filter expression key are affected. This issue affects Spring AI: from 1.0.0 before 1.0.5, from 1.1.0 before 1.1.4.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.springframework.ai:spring-ai-vector-store | ≥ 1.0.0&&< 1.0.5 | 1.0.5org.springframework.ai:spring-ai-vector-store:1.0.5 |
| ☕Maven | org.springframework.ai:spring-ai-vector-store | ≥ 1.1.0-M1&&< 1.1.4 | 1.1.4org.springframework.ai:spring-ai-vector-store:1.1.4 |
Affected Products
spring aivmwareResearch use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.springframework.ai:spring-ai-vector-store, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.springframework.ai:spring-ai-vector-store to 1.0.5 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2026-22738 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Stop passing untrusted input into the interpreter or shell: call the affected binary with an argument array rather than a composed command string, reject anything outside a strict allowlist of expected values, and run the component under an account that cannot reach beyond the work it legitimately does.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2026-22738 in your dependencies?
Find it across Maven, including transitive dependencies.