# CVE-2026-85388: Worklenz SQL injection in sort-field pagination parameter

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-85388-worklenz-sql-injection-in-sort-field-pagination-parameter  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-09-03. Updated: 2026-09-25  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-85388 · Severity: high · CVSS 8.1 · Published 2026-09-03

Worklenz is a project management platform that organizes tasks and team workflows. The application fails to properly validate user-supplied sorting parameters in pagination requests, allowing authenticated users to inject malicious SQL code. Attackers can exploit this to extract sensitive database information including password hashes from other tenants, compromising data confidentiality and customer isolation in a multi-tenant environment.

Technologies: [Worklenz](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/worklenz). Vendors: [Worklenz](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/worklenz).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-85388 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-85388 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-85388?** High severity, with a CVSS score of 8.1, published 3 September 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** Worklenz through 3.0.0.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-85388?** 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-2026-85388 attacked?** It is attacked over the network, in a web application.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-85388?** Check whether you run Worklenz 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

The vulnerability is a SQL injection flaw in the pagination helper function's sort-field parameter validation. The vulnerable code directly interpolates user-controlled sortField and sortOrder values into ORDER BY clauses without proper sanitization (e.g., `ORDER BY ${sortField} ${sortOrder}`). Exploitation requires authentication but no additional preconditions; attackers can inject arbitrary PostgreSQL expressions such as time-based or boolean-based blind SQL injection to exfiltrate data from the database. This is categorized as an incomplete fix for the prior CVE-2026-25947. Patches should implement a whitelist of allowed sort fields and parameterize sort order as an enumerated value.

## Affected products

- Worklenz Worklenz through 3.0.0

## Timeline

- 2026-09-03: disclosed
- other: Incomplete fix for CVE-2026-25947

## References

- [https://github.com/Worklenz/worklenz](https://github.com/Worklenz/worklenz)
- [https://github.com/Worklenz/worklenz/blob/v3.0.0/worklenz-backend/src/controllers/job-titles-controller.ts](https://github.com/Worklenz/worklenz/blob/v3.0.0/worklenz-backend/src/controllers/job-titles-controller.ts)

## Related threats

- [Worklenz SQL injection in reporting members endpoints](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-104060-worklenz-before-3-3-0-contains-an-sql-injection-vulnerability-in)
- [Worklenz task API authorization bypass](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-85389-worklenz-task-api-authorization-bypass)