CVE-2026-73038
NodeBB < 4.15.0 Stored XSS via ActivityPub emoji tag.icon.url and tag.name
Description
NodeBB before 4.15.0 contains a stored cross-site scripting vulnerability in the renderEmoji function that fails to escape tag.icon.url and tag.name attributes. Attackers can deliver malicious ActivityPub Create/Note objects with crafted emoji tags to inject arbitrary HTML and JavaScript into stored post content, executing code in all viewers' browsers.
INFO
Published Date :
Aug. 13, 2026, 7:17 p.m.
Last Modified :
Aug. 13, 2026, 7:17 p.m.
Remotely Exploit :
Yes !
Source :
[email protected]
Affected Products
The following products are affected by CVE-2026-73038
vulnerability.
Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the
products
that
are
affected, the information is not represented in the table below.
No affected product recoded yet
CVSS Scores
| Score | Version | Severity | Vector | Exploitability Score | Impact Score | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | MEDIUM | 83251b91-4cc7-4094-a5c7-464a1b83ea10 | ||||
| CVSS 3.1 | MEDIUM | [email protected] | ||||
| CVSS 4.0 | MEDIUM | 83251b91-4cc7-4094-a5c7-464a1b83ea10 | ||||
| CVSS 4.0 | MEDIUM | [email protected] |
Solution
- Update NodeBB to version 4.15.0 or later.
- Ensure emoji rendering is properly escaped.
- Validate all user-supplied emoji data.
- Sanitize all HTML content before rendering.
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools
Here, you will find a curated list of external links that provide in-depth
information, practical solutions, and valuable tools related to
CVE-2026-73038.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration
While CVE identifies
specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or
weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-73038 is
associated with the following CWEs:
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)
Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification
(CAPEC)
stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and
approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2026-73038
weaknesses.
We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).
Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.
The following list is the news that have been mention
CVE-2026-73038 vulnerability anywhere in the article.
The following table lists the changes that have been made to the
CVE-2026-73038 vulnerability over time.
Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.
-
New CVE Received by [email protected]
Aug. 13, 2026
Action Type Old Value New Value Added Affected [{'repo': 'https://github.com/NodeBB/NodeBB', 'vendor': 'NodeBB', 'product': 'NodeBB', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '0', 'lessThan': '4.15.0', 'versionType': 'semver'}], 'packageURL': 'pkg:github/NodeBB/NodeBB', 'defaultStatus': 'affected'}] Added Description NodeBB before 4.15.0 contains a stored cross-site scripting vulnerability in the renderEmoji function that fails to escape tag.icon.url and tag.name attributes. Attackers can deliver malicious ActivityPub Create/Note objects with crafted emoji tags to inject arbitrary HTML and JavaScript into stored post content, executing code in all viewers' browsers. Added CVSS V4.0 AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:P/VC:N/VI:N/VA:N/SC:L/SI:L/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X Added CVSS V3.1 AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N Added CWE CWE-79 Added Reference https://github.com/NodeBB/NodeBB/commit/c0d94a217edcafcdb9b3920a6e80935194bcb19e Added Reference https://github.com/NodeBB/NodeBB/issues/14601 Added Reference https://github.com/NodeBB/NodeBB/releases/tag/v4.15.0 Added Reference https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/nodebb-stored-xss-via-activitypub-emoji-tag-icon-url-and-tag-name