GHSA-2xgm-wc4g-5jvg
n8n: Improper Authorization Allows Authenticated Users to Assign Workflows to Folders in Other Projects
Blast Radius
Weekly download volume for affected packages — a proxy for how broadly this vulnerability is deployed.
n8nnpmDescription
Impact
An authenticated user with permission to create workflows in one project could bypass project/folder authorization boundaries during workflow creation. By supplying a crafted request payload, the user could associate a newly created workflow with a folder belonging to a different project they do not have access to.
The workflow itself remains in the attacker's project and is not visible to the target project's members. The target project's folder ownership is not changed, and no data from the target project is exposed. The impact is limited to a logical integrity violation of the target project's folder structure at the database level.
This issue affects instances with multi-project and folder support enabled.
Patches
The issue has been fixed in n8n version 2.28.0. Users should upgrade to this version or later to remediate the vulnerability.
Workarounds
If upgrading is not immediately possible, administrators should consider the following temporary mitigations:
- Restrict project membership and workflow creation permissions to fully trusted users only.
This workaround does not fully remediate the risk and should only be used as a short-term mitigation measure.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📦npm | n8n | all versions | 2.28.0 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for n8n. 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
Update n8n to 2.28.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-2xgm-wc4g-5jvg is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
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 GHSA-2xgm-wc4g-5jvg 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 GHSA-2xgm-wc4g-5jvg. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-2xgm-wc4g-5jvg in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-2xgm-wc4g-5jvg across npm dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.