CVE-2026-39379
HIGHCVE-2026-39379 is a high-severity (CVSS 7.1) vulnerability in org.geonetwork-opensource:geonetwork. O3 Security confirms whether CVE-2026-39379 is actually reachable in your code before you act, and blocks exploitation at runtime until you patch.
GeoNetwork has reflected XSS through client-side template injection
Real-World Exposure
org.geonetwork-opensource:geonetwork☕org.geonetwork-opensource:geonetwork☕org.geonetwork-opensource:geonetwork☕org.geonetwork-opensource:geonetworkReal-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
Summary
It is possible to craft a URL that causes GeoNetwork to reflect attacker-controlled content into an error page in a way that gets evaluated as a client-side template expression. Combined with known AngularJS sandbox-escape techniques, this can be used to execute arbitrary JavaScript in the victim's browser (reflected Cross-Site Scripting via client-side template injection).
Details
When a user requests a service URL that does not exist or that they are not authorized to access, GeoNetwork shows an error page that reflects part of the original request back to the user without adequately neutralizing it for the context it is rendered in. Because this error page is an AngularJS application, attacker-controlled content in the reflected value can be interpreted as a template expression and evaluated once the page loads in the victim's browser, rather than being displayed as inert text.
Impact
An attacker can trick a user (including an administrator) into visiting a crafted link. The resulting script execution runs in the context of the victim's authenticated session and can be used to exfiltrate information or perform actions on the victim's behalf. For example, an attacker could inject a fake login form that looks identical to the legitimate GeoNetwork login page to harvest credentials.
GeoNetwork 3.x and 4.0.x are archived/unmaintained and will not receive a fix for this issue. Instances running those lines should upgrade to a supported release (4.2.15 or later, or 4.4.10 or later).
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.geonetwork-opensource:geonetwork | ≥ 3.0.0 | No fix |
| ☕Maven | org.geonetwork-opensource:geonetwork | ≥ 4.0.0-alpha.1 | No fix |
| ☕Maven | org.geonetwork-opensource:geonetwork | ≥ 4.2.0&&< 4.2.15 | 4.2.15 |
| ☕Maven | org.geonetwork-opensource:geonetwork | ≥ 4.4.0&&< 4.4.10 | 4.4.10 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.geonetwork-opensource:geonetwork. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
No patched version of org.geonetwork-opensource:geonetwork has shipped for CVE-2026-39379 yet. Where your build allows, override or pin the dependency away from the vulnerable range, and apply any maintainer-recommended mitigation.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How O3 protects you
O3 pinpoints whether CVE-2026-39379 is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to CVE-2026-39379. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2026-39379 in your dependencies?
O3 detects CVE-2026-39379 across Maven dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.