Description
pgAdmin 4's Import/Export Data tool builds a psql \copy (...) command line by interpolating a user-supplied SQL query into a Jinja template and passing the rendered line to psql via --command. To stop an attacker from breaking out of the (...) wrapper, create_import_export_job() (route POST /import_export/job/<sid>, gated only by the ordinary, commonly-granted tools_import_export_data permission) validated the query with a hand-written parenthesis-balance checker, _is_query_parens_balanced(). That checker always treated a backslash before a single quote (\') as escaping the quote, i.e. as if standard_conforming_strings were off. PostgreSQL has defaulted standard_conforming_strings to on since 9.1 (2010), the default on every PostgreSQL version pgAdmin 4 currently supports (13-18); under that default psql's own \copy tokenizer treats \ as an ordinary character, so a single quote immediately after it closes the string literal. A query such as SELECT 'a\') TO PROGRAM 'echo pwned' x' was therefore accepted as "balanced" by pgAdmin's checker (which believed the ) was still inside the string), while psql, run through the actual rendered command line, closes the string at that point and treats the following ) as the end of the wrapping \copy (...) subquery, exposing an attacker-chosen TO PROGRAM '<command>' clause that psql executes via popen() -- independent of a subsequent syntax error later on the same line. This is the same class of bug as CVE-2025-12762/CVE-2025-13780 (RCE via psql meta-command/COPY injection during PLAIN-format dump restore), reached through an independently written defense in a different module (Import/Export Data rather than Restore) that had its own, different logic bug (inverted backslash-escape semantics rather than a BOM-defeated regex anchor).

The fix rejects any backslash inside a single-quoted string in the query outright, rather than picking one of the two possible psql interpretations. This is intentionally conservative: because the correct interpretation of \ depends on the target server's standard_conforming_strings setting, which the checker cannot reliably know at validation time, refusing the query is safer than guessing.

This issue affects pgAdmin 4: from the introduction of _is_query_parens_balanced() before 9.18.
Published: 2026-07-31
Score: 9.4 Critical
EPSS: < 1% Very Low
KEV: No
Impact: n/a
Action: n/a
AI Analysis

Impact

The vulnerability allows an attacker to inject a shell command into the psql \copy command line that pgAdmin 4 builds from a user‑supplied SQL query. A backslash before a single quote is incorrectly treated as escaping the quote, which causes the psql tokenizer to close the string literal early. This discrepancy lets the query contain a TO PROGRAM clause that executes arbitrary code via popen(). The flaw is a classic form string and command injection issue, represented by CWE‑115 and CWE‑78. The impact is full remote code execution on the machine running the pgAdmin 4 service.

Affected Systems

All versions of pgAdmin 4 that include the Import/Export Data tool are affected, up to and including the latest release prior to the fix that introduced stricter query validation. The vulnerability spans all PostgreSQL backend versions supported by pgAdmin (13‑18).

Risk and Exploitability

The CVSS score is 9.4, indicating critical severity. The EPSS score is under 1 %, showing a very low measured probability of exploitation today, and the vulnerability is not listed in CISA’s KEV catalog. A likely attack requires a user with the tools_import_export_data permission and access to the pgAdmin web interface to create a job with a malicious query. Because the flaw is tied to a specific parsing mismatch, exploitation is not trivial but is feasible for a skilled attacker with the necessary permissions. The overall risk is high due to the severe impact, but the low exploitation likelihood suggests monitoring for attempts.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on August 2, 2026 at 04:06 UTC.

Remediation

No vendor fix or workaround currently provided.

OpenCVE Recommended Actions

  • Update pgAdmin 4 to the latest version that includes the query‑validation fix that rejects backslashes within single‑quoted strings.
  • If an upgrade is not immediately possible, restrict the tools_import_export_data permission to a minimal set of trusted users so that only authorized personnel can invoke Import/Export jobs.
  • As a temporary measure, disable the Import/Export Data feature via the pgAdmin configuration or by removing the corresponding menu items, thereby preventing the vulnerable code path from being executed.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on August 2, 2026 at 04:06 UTC.

Tracking

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Advisories

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History

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 16:00:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
First Time appeared Pgadmin
Pgadmin pgadmin 4
Vendors & Products Pgadmin
Pgadmin pgadmin 4

Sat, 01 Aug 2026 00:15:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
References
Metrics threat_severity

None

 threat_severity

Critical

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 17:30:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Metrics ssvc

{'options': {'Automatable': 'no', 'Exploitation': 'none', 'Technical Impact': 'total'}, 'version': '2.0.3'}

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 16:15:00 +0000

Type Values Removed Values Added
Description pgAdmin 4's Import/Export Data tool builds a psql \copy (...) command line by interpolating a user-supplied SQL query into a Jinja template and passing the rendered line to psql via --command. To stop an attacker from breaking out of the (...) wrapper, create_import_export_job() (route POST /import_export/job/<sid>, gated only by the ordinary, commonly-granted tools_import_export_data permission) validated the query with a hand-written parenthesis-balance checker, _is_query_parens_balanced(). That checker always treated a backslash before a single quote (\') as escaping the quote, i.e. as if standard_conforming_strings were off. PostgreSQL has defaulted standard_conforming_strings to on since 9.1 (2010), the default on every PostgreSQL version pgAdmin 4 currently supports (13-18); under that default psql's own \copy tokenizer treats \ as an ordinary character, so a single quote immediately after it closes the string literal. A query such as SELECT 'a\') TO PROGRAM 'echo pwned' x' was therefore accepted as "balanced" by pgAdmin's checker (which believed the ) was still inside the string), while psql, run through the actual rendered command line, closes the string at that point and treats the following ) as the end of the wrapping \copy (...) subquery, exposing an attacker-chosen TO PROGRAM '<command>' clause that psql executes via popen() -- independent of a subsequent syntax error later on the same line. This is the same class of bug as CVE-2025-12762/CVE-2025-13780 (RCE via psql meta-command/COPY injection during PLAIN-format dump restore), reached through an independently written defense in a different module (Import/Export Data rather than Restore) that had its own, different logic bug (inverted backslash-escape semantics rather than a BOM-defeated regex anchor). The fix rejects any backslash inside a single-quoted string in the query outright, rather than picking one of the two possible psql interpretations. This is intentionally conservative: because the correct interpretation of \ depends on the target server's standard_conforming_strings setting, which the checker cannot reliably know at validation time, refusing the query is safer than guessing. This issue affects pgAdmin 4: from the introduction of _is_query_parens_balanced() before 9.18.
Title pgAdmin 4: RCE via backslash-escape mismatch in Import/Export Data query guard (incomplete defense, sibling gap to CVE-2025-13780)
Weaknesses CWE-115
CWE-78
References
Metrics cvssV3_1

{'score': 9.9, 'vector': 'CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H'}

cvssV4_0

{'score': 9.4, 'vector': 'CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:H/SI:H/SA:H'}

Subscriptions

Pgadmin Pgadmin 4
cve-icon MITRE

Status: PUBLISHED

Assigner: PostgreSQL

Published:

Updated: 2026-08-01T03:56:13.838Z

Reserved: 2026-07-27T14:43:12.802Z

Link: CVE-2026-17566

cve-icon Vulnrichment

Updated: 2026-07-31T16:59:32.594Z

cve-icon NVD

Status : Analyzed

Published: 2026-07-31T16:17:00.037

Modified: 2026-08-05T20:00:10.473

Link: CVE-2026-17566

cve-icon Redhat

Severity : Critical

Publid Date: 2026-07-31T16:00:22Z

Links: CVE-2026-17566 - Bugzilla

cve-icon OpenCVE Enrichment

Updated: 2026-08-03T15:45:03Z

Weaknesses
  • CWE-115

    Misinterpretation of Input

  • CWE-78

    Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')