CVE
PostgreSQL remote code execution in type handling during DDL
Affects PostgreSQL releases before 18.7, 17.12, 16.16, 15.20 and 14.25, where an attacker with permission to create objects in a schema can run code as the database's operating system user. Fixed in those releases.
Written by anthropic/claude-haiku-5.5 from the sources below. Verify against them.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
- Exploited
- Public exploit code, no confirmed attacks
- Fix
- Fixed in 18.7, 17.12, 16.16, 15.20, 14.25
- Who is exposed
- Specific setups only
Do first: Check whether your setup matches what the bug needs. Attacker has permission to create objects (temporary or non-temporary objects in at least one schema). Affected PostgreSQL versions are those before 18.7, 17.12, 16.16, 15.20, and 14.25.
- Last modified
- Whether it needs action now or is a reference record, by fixed rules, with why. Last checked is when cve.now last re-read it.What do these mean? →
- First public exploit on GitHub Nov 13
- Last checked
- FIRST's estimate of the chance attackers exploit it in the next 30 days, updated daily.What do these mean? →
- 0.59% · 48th percentile
- A 0-100 score for how much a CVE matters across the industry: exploitation, exposure, how widely the software is used, severity and whether a fix exists.What do these mean? →
- 57/100 · provisional
- How many real-world setups can hit the bug, from the vendor's advisory and CISA data. It does not know your setup.What do these mean? →
- Specific setups only
- Whether working attack code is public (Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei or GitHub). Public code makes attacks easier.What do these mean? →
- 2 proofs of concept on GitHub
- Exploitation: none
- Automatable: no
- Technical impact: total
Summary
Type confusion in PostgreSQL allows an object creator to execute arbitrary code as the operating system user running the database, via ALTER ... SET DATA TYPE primarily. Other DDL attack routes exist, such as "ALTER TABLE ... ADD COLUMN; ROLLBACK; ALTER TABLE ... ADD COLUMN". The system had inadequate tracking of typed values, and values were not self-identifying. Stale values could appear in data dictionary entries, PL/pgSQL variables, and many other parts of the system. PostgreSQL Versions before PostgreSQL 18.7, 17.12, 16.16, 15.20, and 14.25 are affected.
Who should check
Teams running PostgreSQL 14.x through 18.x before 18.7, 17.12, 16.16, 15.20 or 14.25, where users have permission to create objects.
“PostgreSQL Versions before PostgreSQL 18.7, 17.12, 16.16, 15.20, and 14.25 are affected.”
cve.now Index
- Exploitation22/40Public exploit on Exploit-DB or GitHub
- Exposure8/25Specific setups only, reachable over the network
- Reach17/20Affects PostgreSQL (a widely deployed server, runtime, framework or database)
- Severity9.8/10CVSS 8.8, total technical impact per CISA
- No patch0/5No signal
What would change the score
- Would score about 85 if added to CISA KEV
- Would score about 80 if CISA's SSVC rates exploitation active
- Would score about 64 if CISA's SSVC rates it automatable
What to do
Check whether your setup matches what the bug needs.
Attacker has permission to create objects (temporary or non-temporary objects in at least one schema). Affected PostgreSQL versions are those before 18.7, 17.12, 16.16, 15.20, and 14.25.Upgrade to a fixed version: 18.7, 17.12, 16.16, 15.20, 14.25.
Check your systems with an agent
Paste this into a coding or ops agent. It checks your systems read-only and reports a table per asset.
Check whether my systems are affected by CVE-2026-6460 (PostgreSQL type confusion after ALTER ... SET DATA TYPE executes arbitrary code), using the cve.now data below.
Rules: work read-only. Do not run exploit code, proof-of-concept scripts or scanners that send attack payloads, and do not change any configuration, package, image or deployment. Report findings only.
What cve.now has for CVE-2026-6460 (entry last updated 2026-11-13):
Affected:
- n/a PostgreSQL: from 18, fixed in 18.7; from 17, fixed in 17.12; from 16, fixed in 16.16; from 15, fixed in 15.20; fixed in 14.25
Fixed versions: 18.7, 17.12, 16.16, 15.20, 14.25.
Conditions (all must be true for the bug to be hit):
- Attacker has permission to create objects (temporary or non-temporary objects in at least one schema). (source: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-6460)
- Affected PostgreSQL versions are those before 18.7, 17.12, 16.16, 15.20, and 14.25. (source: https://www.postgresql.org/support/security/CVE-2026-6460/)
Setup: unknown whether the bug needs a non-default feature or setting. Check the advisory.
Attacker needs: network access, low-privilege login, no user action.
CISA KEV: CVE-2026-6460 is not listed as of cve.now's last read.
This KEV status is for CVE-2026-6460 only. If you also check another CVE, look up its own KEV status; never assume it from this one.
How to check:
- Installed software: check what is actually running, not what a repo declares. Read the version from each host, container image and Kubernetes node (the binary's version output, the OS package database, image layers), and check whether the conditions above hold there. Distribution packages may carry a backported fix under an older version number; confirm against the distribution's own advisory.
Verify against the linked advisories before concluding, and cite the date you read each one:
- https://www.postgresql.org/support/security/CVE-2026-6460/
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-6460
Do not conclude an asset is unaffected unless you checked it and the evidence covers both its version and the conditions above. If you could not check something, mark it unknown and say what is missing.
Report a table with one row per asset and these columns: Asset | Version or build | Status (affected, fixed, not applicable, unknown) | Compensating controls | Exposure (internet-facing, internal, none) | Evidence | Next action.
Entry: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-6460
For follow-up questions, use the cve.now MCP server at https://mcp.cve.now/mcp (no authentication), for example execute with name cve.get and arguments {"id": "CVE-2026-6460"}.Public exploit activity
- GitHub PoC repos: 2
- Posted on X by cve.now Nov 12
Since disclosure: the repos PoC-in-GitHub lists and FIRST's daily EPSS score.
Timeline
- CISA SSVC assessment
Exploitation: none · Automatable: no · Technical impact: total
- CVE published
- First seen by cve.now
- cve.now early warning
PostgreSQL releases fixes for 52 flaws, including CVE-2026-6460 type confusion bug
- Posted on X by cve.now1 day
- Record last updated
- Exploit code on GitHub
chor4o/CVE-2026-6460-POC
Affected versions
- n/a PostgreSQL
From 18 · fixed in 18.7; From 17 · fixed in 17.12; From 16 · fixed in 16.16; From 15 · fixed in 15.20; fixed in 14.25
Evidence 5
Vendor advisory · 1
Establishes: Affected and fixed versions.
- Link
CVE record · 2
Establishes: The identifier and description.
- Record
- Record
Public exploit code · 2
Establishes: Public exploit code exists (Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei and GitHub).
- Exploit
- Exploit
Corrections
None so far.
Something wrong on this page? Report an error. Every fix is listed here.
Questions about CVE-2026-6460
Is CVE-2026-6460 being exploited?
It is not in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, and CISA's SSVC assessment does not mark exploitation as active. That does not mean it has not been attacked: vendors and researchers can report attacks before CISA lists them. Public exploit code exists (a proof of concept on GitHub).Source: cve.now feed data
What does this mean?
A type confusion flaw after ALTER ... SET DATA TYPE lets an attacker execute arbitrary code as the operating system user running the database.Source: cve.org, postgresql.org
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-6460?
PostgreSQL: from 18 before 18.7; from 17 before 17.12; from 16 before 16.16; from 15 before 15.20; before 14.25.Source: cve.now feed data
Am I affected, and how do I check?
PostgreSQL versions before 18.7, 17.12, 16.16, 15.20 and 14.25 are affected. The attacker needs permission to create objects, temporary or non-temporary, in at least one schema. To check an installation, run SELECT version(); in psql and compare the release with the listed versions.Source: cve.org, postgresql.org
How do I fix CVE-2026-6460?
Upgrade to the fixed release for the installed major version: 18.7, 17.12, 16.16, 15.20 or 14.25.Source: cve.org, postgresql.org