CVE-2026-49489: OpenCATS SQL injection in DataGrid sortDirection parameter

CVE-2026-49489 · Severity: high · CVSS 8.5 · Published 2026-05-31

OpenCATS, an open-source applicant tracking system used by recruiters, contains a security flaw in its data display component. An authorized user can exploit this flaw to bypass security controls and extract the entire contents of the database, including sensitive candidate information, personal data, and encrypted passwords. This could lead to a total loss of data confidentiality and potential identity theft or further system compromise.

Technologies: OpenCATS. Vendors: OpenCATS.

Quick answers

Is CVE-2026-49489 exploited in the wild?
No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-49489 being exploited in the wild.
How severe is CVE-2026-49489?
High severity, with a CVSS score of 8.5, published 31 May 2026.
Which products and versions are affected?
OpenCATS <= 0.9.7.4.
Is there a fix for CVE-2026-49489?
No fixed version is recorded yet. Check the vendor's advisory in the references below. If you run it, Junglewise drafts a mitigation that fits your setup and applies it once you approve, with senior security engineers behind it.
How is CVE-2026-49489 attacked?
It is attacked over the network, in a network appliance.
Am I affected by CVE-2026-49489?
Check whether you run OpenCATS 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.

Technical details

A time-based blind SQL injection vulnerability exists in OpenCATS versions up to and including 0.9.7.4. The vulnerability is located in the DataGrid component, specifically within the 'sortDirection' parameter processed by 'ajax/getDataGridPager.php'. The root cause is the direct concatenation of the 'sortDirection' parameter into a SQL ORDER BY clause without proper validation or sanitization in 'lib/DataGrid.php'. An authenticated attacker with low privileges can send crafted GET requests containing malicious SQL payloads to perform binary search extraction of database data via SLEEP() functions. While the use of mysqli_query() prevents multi-statement attacks like data modification, an attacker can still fully dump the database schema and records. No patch is currently available.

Affected products

  • OpenCATS OpenCATS <= 0.9.7.4

Timeline

  • 2026-04-23: advisory: GitHub Security Advisory published
  • 2026-05-27: other: Exploit-DB entry published with proof-of-concept code
  • 2026-05-31: disclosed: CVE published and added to NVD

References

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