CVE-2026-105804 in Payload
Summary
by MITRE • 10/06/2026
Payload is a free and open source headless content management system. Payload versions from 3.0.0 before 3.90.0 and canary versions from 4.0.0-canary.0 before 4.0.0-canary.34 use a lower-than-recommended PBKDF2 work factor for password hashing, reducing the computational effort required to test recovered password hashes. This issue is fixed in versions 3.90.0 and 4.0.0-canary.34.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/06/2026
The vulnerability identified involves Payload CMS, a free and open-source headless content management system built on Node.js. The core technical flaw lies within the password hashing mechanism used for authenticating users. Specifically, versions ranging from 3.0.0 up to but not including 3.90.0, as well as canary releases of version 4 starting from 4.0.0-canary.0 and ending before 4.0.0-canary.34, implement a PBKDF2 (Password-Based Key Derivation Function 2) algorithm with a work factor that is lower than recommended security standards dictate. In cryptographic terms, the work factor determines the number of iterations performed during the hashing process. A lower iteration count significantly reduces the computational cost required for an attacker to perform brute-force or dictionary attacks against stored password hashes. This weakness effectively diminishes the time and resources needed to reverse-engineer plaintext passwords from their hashed representations if a database breach occurs.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability exposes user accounts to credential stuffing and offline cracking attacks with increased efficiency. If an adversary gains access to the Payload CMS database through other vectors such as SQL injection or unauthorized API access, they can exploit the weak hashing parameters to rapidly test millions of password guesses per second using modern hardware accelerators like GPUs or ASICs. This compromises the confidentiality of user credentials, potentially leading to unauthorized administrative access, data exfiltration, and further lateral movement within the associated infrastructure. The impact is particularly severe for applications where Payload CMS serves as a central hub for sensitive content management, as compromised admin accounts can alter site configurations, inject malicious scripts, or expose proprietary business logic.
This issue aligns with CWE-916: Use of Weak Hash for Passwords and falls under the MITRE ATT&CK technique T1110: Brute Force, specifically within the context of offline password cracking scenarios where hash quality directly influences attack success rates. The vulnerability highlights a common oversight in web application development where default or legacy cryptographic parameters are retained without periodic review against current best practices such as those outlined by NIST SP 800-63B regarding digital identity guidelines. To mitigate this risk, organizations running affected versions must immediately upgrade to Payload CMS version 3.90.0 or later for the stable branch, or version 4.0.0-canary.34 and above if utilizing canary releases. Additionally, it is advisable to enforce a forced password reset for all existing users upon upgrading, ensuring that new passwords are hashed with the updated, more robust work factor parameters provided in the patched versions.