# CVE-2026-123820: Wagtail Documents and Images API access control bypass

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-123820-wagtail-is-an-open-source-content-management-system-built-on  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-11-09. Updated: 2026-11-10  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-123820 · Severity: medium · CVSS 5.3 · Published 2026-11-09

Wagtail is a content management system built on Django used to manage and publish digital content. An API endpoint fails to properly enforce access restrictions on descendant document and image collections, allowing unauthorized users to discover and enumerate private files and images that should be hidden.

Technologies: [Wagtail](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/wagtail). Vendors: [Wagtail](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/wagtail).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-123820 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-123820 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-123820?** Medium severity, with a CVSS score of 5.3, published 9 November 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** Wagtail before 7.0.9, 7.3.4, 7.4.3, and 8.0rc2.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-123820?** Yes: fixed in 7.0.9, 7.3.4, 7.4.3, 8.0rc2. Junglewise finds every place you run it, drafts the upgrade and applies it once you approve.

**How is CVE-2026-123820 attacked?** It is attacked over the network, in a web application.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-123820?** Check whether you run Wagtail at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

## How to fix

- Fixed in 7.0.9, 7.3.4, 7.4.3, 8.0rc2

## Technical details

The Wagtail Documents and Images API V2 fails to exclude descendant collections when enforcing view restrictions, despite descendants inheriting access controls from their ancestors. An authenticated or unauthenticated API consumer can enumerate metadata (filenames and image names) of restricted resources by querying child collections, even when the parent collection access is properly restricted.

## Affected products

- Wagtail Wagtail before 7.0.9, 7.3.4, 7.4.3, and 8.0rc2

## Timeline

- 2026-11-09: disclosed

## References

- [https://github.com/wagtail/wagtail/commit/320c37ed4624702d3864ce2364ce8536b2ce5115](https://github.com/wagtail/wagtail/commit/320c37ed4624702d3864ce2364ce8536b2ce5115)
- [https://github.com/wagtail/wagtail/commit/9a69e0ad153c515ddd86ddd33d2c9d2554201568](https://github.com/wagtail/wagtail/commit/9a69e0ad153c515ddd86ddd33d2c9d2554201568)

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