All vulnerabilities
CVE-2026-84691

Automation-controller: automation-controller-container: automation-controller: format string injection in the api 4xx error log setting discloses django secret_key and database credentials to an administrator

Red Hat Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform 2.5 for RHEL 8Operating systems
CVSS
8.7High
ExploitationNo known exploitationNot in CISA KEV, which does not prove it is unexploitedCISA KEV
Exploit odds (EPSS)0.20%Chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 9% of CVEs. Scored 23 Oct 2026FIRST EPSS
Fixed inNone listedNo source names a fixed version. Check the vendor advisory below
Published23 Sep 2026Updated 16 Oct 2026CVE List

What fixes it

No source in this snapshot names a fixed version. The vendor advisories under References are the place to check.

Description

A flaw was found in Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform's automation- controller. The setting that formats the log message emitted for API 4XX errors is an administrator-controlled Python format-string template that is rendered with a live user object as an argument. Because Python string formatting permits attribute and item traversal on its arguments, an administrator can craft a template that walks from the user object into the application settings and reads the Django secret key and the database password. The formatted message is written to a logger that can be forwarded to an external log aggregator, whose destination is also administrator-controlled, allowing the secrets to be sent off the host. An authenticated administrator can thereby obtain the master encryption key used to protect all stored credentials and the database service password, enabling offline decryption of every stored credential, forgery of user sessions, and direct access to the controller database.

Text from CVE List

Affected versions 5

  • Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform 2.5 for RHEL 8unaffected: 0:4.6.33-1.el8ap and laterCVE List
  • Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform 2.5 for RHEL 9unaffected: 0:4.6.33-1.el9ap and laterCVE List
  • Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform 2.6 for RHEL 9unaffected: 0:4.7.17-1.el9ap and laterCVE List
  • Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform 2.6unaffected: 1789673739 and laterCVE List
  • Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform 2.7unaffected: 1789580684 and laterCVE List

References 6