CVE-2026-48588: Django Cache Middleware May Expose Private Vulnerability

LOW
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-3h9f-r86x-qvjx
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CVSS 3.1
CWE-524
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-48588 is a LOW (CVSS 3.1) cache middleware may expose private vulnerability (CWE-524: Use of Cache Containing Sensitive Information) affecting Django libraries in the PyPI ecosystem. The issue involves cache middleware may expose private responses when unrelated request cookies are present. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 5.2.16, 6.0.7.

CVE-2026-48588 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-48588
GHSA Identifier GHSA-3h9f-r86x-qvjx
Severity LOW
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 3.1
CWE Classification CWE-524: Use of Cache Containing Sensitive Information
Affected Product Django
Package Ecosystem PyPI
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 3.1

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity High (AC:H)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction Required (UI:R)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality Low (C:L)
Integrity None (I:N)
Availability None (A:N)

How to Fix CVE-2026-48588

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Django dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

django fixed: 5.2.16 
pip install django>=5.2.16
django fixed: 6.0.7 
pip install django>=6.0.7
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

pip show django

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Python environment is affected by CVE-2026-48588, inspect your installed packages using pip:

pip show django

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Django in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 5.2.16), your application is affected.

Note: The pip show django command checks currently installed packages in your active Python environment.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-524: Use of Cache Containing Sensitive Information, where the code uses a cache that contains sensitive information, but the cache can be read by an actor outside of the intended control sphere. In Django, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

An issue was discovered in Django 6.0 before 6.0.7 and 5.2 before 5.2.16. `UpdateCacheMiddleware` and the `cache_page()` decorator cache responses that vary on cookies when the incoming request carries unrelated cookies, which allows remote attackers to read private data from the shared cache. Earlier, unsupported Django series (such as 5.0.x, 4.1.x, and 3.2.x) were not evaluated and may also be affected. Django would like to thank Chris Whyland for reporting this issue.

CVE-2026-48588 Affected Django Versions

2 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
5.2.166.0.7
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
django
pypi/django
PyPI
< 5.2.16
5.2.16
django
pypi/django
PyPI
≥ 6.0.0
< 6.0.7
6.0.7

References

NVD — CVE-2026-48588 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-48588
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/django/django/commit/64f9a2b2283fde3ec69fb0dfe441cf0f6f411ba3
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/django/django/commit/6e365f8d01f2ba0bbd90968d76a42600fb8bc4b1
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/django/django/commit/721685aa7799cc9327bd202cd1f70bd012ca95a7
Django Release RELEASE
https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/dev/releases/security
Django Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/django/django
Django Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/django/PYSEC-2026-2090.yaml
groups.google.com/g/django-announce WEB
https://groups.google.com/g/django-announce
Django Release RELEASE
https://www.djangoproject.com/weblog/2026/jul/07/security-releases

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-48588?
CVE-2026-48588 is a security vulnerability in Django involving cache middleware may expose private responses when unrelated request cookies are present under CWE-524: Use of Cache Containing Sensitive Information.
Which Django versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 5.2.16, 6.0.7 across affected packages: django.
What version fixes CVE-2026-48588?
Upgrading to 5.2.16, 6.0.7 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is django affected?
Yes, django is affected in releases prior to 5.2.16, 6.0.7. Upgrade your dependency to 5.2.16, 6.0.7 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-48588?
CVE-2026-48588 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 3.1 (LOW) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-48588?
CVE-2026-48588 is classified under CWE-524: Use of Cache Containing Sensitive Information (The code uses a cache that contains sensitive information, but the cache can be read by an actor outside of the intended control sphere.).
How can I check PyPI dependencies for CVE-2026-48588?
Run the dependency tree command: 'pip show django'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-3h9f-r86x-qvjx",
  "modified" : "2026-08-07T20:00:57Z",
  "published" : "2026-07-07T15:32:57Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-48588" ],
  "summary" : "Django: cache middleware may expose private responses when unrelated request cookies are present",
  "details" : "An issue was discovered in Django 6.0 before 6.0.7 and 5.2 before 5.2.16.\n`UpdateCacheMiddleware` and the `cache_page()` decorator cache responses that vary on cookies when the incoming request carries unrelated cookies, which allows remote attackers to read private data from the shared cache.\nEarlier, unsupported Django series (such as 5.0.x, 4.1.x, and 3.2.x) were not evaluated and may also be affected.\nDjango would like to thank Chris Whyland for reporting this issue.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:P/VC:L/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "django"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "5.2.16"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "django"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "6.0.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "6.0.7"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-48588"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/django/django/commit/64f9a2b2283fde3ec69fb0dfe441cf0f6f411ba3"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/django/django/commit/6e365f8d01f2ba0bbd90968d76a42600fb8bc4b1"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/django/django/commit/721685aa7799cc9327bd202cd1f70bd012ca95a7"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/dev/releases/security"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/django/django"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/django/PYSEC-2026-2090.yaml"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://groups.google.com/g/django-announce"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.djangoproject.com/weblog/2026/jul/07/security-releases"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-524" ],
    "severity" : "LOW",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-08-07T20:00:57Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-07-07T15:16:47Z"
  }
}