n8n: Regular Expression Denial of Service in the Default Blocked-File-Pattern Match via a Git Node Clone Path
## Impact The Git node's clone operation matched the destination path against the default `N8N_BLOCK_FILE_PATTERNS` expression, which was written so that a crafted path caused catastrophic backtracking. Evaluation runs synchronously in the main n8n process, so an authenticated user could freeze the instance for everyone with a single workflow execution and no unusual configuration. The patch rewrites the pattern so that matching is linear in the length of the path. ## Patches The issue has been fixed in n8n versions 1.123.76, 2.37.7, and 2.38.2. Users should upgrade to one of these versions or later to remediate the vulnerability. ## Workarounds If upgrading is not immediately possible, administrators should consider the following temporary mitigations: - Restrict n8n instance access to fully trusted users only. - Disable the Git node by adding `n8n-nodes-base.git` to the `NODES_EXCLUDE` environment variable. - Set `N8N_BLOCK_FILE_PATTERNS` to a backtracking-safe equivalent pattern to replace the vulnerable default. These workarounds do not fully remediate the risk and should only be used as short-term mitigation measures.
describes (1)
Related CVEs.
| ID | severity | exploitable | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2026-86081US | — | — | ||
n8n is an open source workflow automation platform. Prior to 1.123.76, 2.37.7, and 2.38.2, the Git node clone operation matched an attacker-controlled destination path against the… | ||||
references
External citations — patches, advisories, analysis.
- https://github.com/n8n-io/n8nPACKAGE
- https://github.com/n8n-io/n8n/releases/tag/n8n@1.123.76WEB
- https://github.com/n8n-io/n8n/releases/tag/n8n@2.37.7WEB
- https://github.com/n8n-io/n8n/releases/tag/n8n@2.38.2WEB
- https://github.com/n8n-io/n8n/security/advisories/GHSA-j535-v25q-vx3qWEB
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-86081ADVISORY
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