LimeSurvey Community Edition 7.8.0 - SQL injection via Archive Attributes
Summary
| CVE | CVE-2026-116645 |
|---|---|
| State | PUBLISHED |
| Assigner | Fluid Attacks |
| Source Priority | CVE Program / NVD first with legacy fallback |
| Published | 2026-11-11 03:16:48 UTC |
| Updated | 2026-11-11 03:16:48 UTC |
| Description | LimeSurvey Community Edition 7.8.0 contains an SQL injection vulnerability in the survey-archive participant import and SPSS-response export workflow. An authenticated user with global surveys.create permission can import a crafted .lsa archive whose participant XML creates an attacker-named attribute column. When the user exports responses from the imported non-anonymous survey, LimeSurvey passes the persisted name to Yii's select builder. Names containing parentheses are treated as SQL expressions instead of quoted identifiers, causing attacker-controlled SQL to execute with the application's database privileges. |
Risk And Classification
Primary CVSS: v4.0 7.1 HIGH from [email protected]
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/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
Problem Types: CWE-89 | CWE-89 CWE-89 Improper neutralization of special elements used in an SQL command ('SQL injection')
| Version | Source | Type | Score | Severity | Vector |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4.0 | [email protected] | Secondary | 7.1 | HIGH | CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/C... |
| 4.0 | CNA | CVSS | 7.1 | HIGH | CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N |
CVSS v4.0 Breakdown
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/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
Vendor Declared Affected Products
| Source | Vendor | Product | Version | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CNA | LimeSurvey | LimeSurvey Community Edition | affected 7.8.0 | Windows, MacOS, Linux |
References
| Reference | Source | Link | Tags |
|---|---|---|---|
| github.com/LimeSurvey/LimeSurvey/blob/master/application/helpers/export_... | [email protected] | github.com | |
| github.com/LimeSurvey/LimeSurvey/blob/master/application/helpers/admin/i... | [email protected] | github.com | |
| github.com/LimeSurvey/LimeSurvey | [email protected] | github.com | |
| fluidattacks.com/es/advisories/pantera | [email protected] | fluidattacks.com | |
| CVE Program record | CVE.ORG | www.cve.org | canonical |
| NVD vulnerability detail | NVD | nvd.nist.gov | canonical, analysis |
Vendor Comments And Credit
Discovery Credit
CNA: Fluid Attacks' AI SAST Scanner (en)
CNA: Miguel Gómez (en)
Additional Advisory Data
| Source | Time | Event |
|---|---|---|
| CNA | 2026-10-27T02:43:00.000Z | Vulnerability discovered |
| CNA | 2026-10-27T16:05:00.000Z | Vendor contacted |
| CNA | 2026-11-11T02:44:00.000Z | Public disclosure |
Solutions
CNA: Apply an upstream patch that strictly validates imported participant attribute identifiers and always quotes schema-derived identifiers before constructing the SPSS export SELECT list. Upgrade to the vendor-fixed release once one is published.
Workarounds
CNA: Do not grant untrusted accounts global survey-creation permission and do not import untrusted .lsa archives. Review imported participant-table schemas for unexpected attribute column names.