CVE-2026-41693 PUBLISHED

i18next-fs-backend: Path traversal via unsanitised lng/ns allows arbitrary file read/overwrite

Assigner: GitHub_M
Reserved: 22.04.2026 Published: 08.05.2026 Updated: 08.05.2026

i18next-fs-backend is a backend layer for i18next using in Node.js and for Deno to load translations from the filesystem. Prior to version 2.6.4, i18next-fs-backend substitutes the lng and ns options directly into the configured loadPath / addPath templates and then read / write the resulting file from disk. The interpolation is unencoded and unvalidated, so a crafted lng or ns value — containing .., a path separator, a control character, a prototype key, or simply an unexpectedly long string — allows an attacker who can influence either value to read or overwrite files outside the intended locale directory. When lng / ns are derived from untrusted input (request-scoped i18next instances behind an HTTP layer such as i18next-http-middleware, or any framework that lets the end user pick the language via query string, cookie, or header), a single request such as ?lng=../../../../etc/passwd causes the backend to attempt to read that path. This issue has been patched in version 2.6.4.

Metrics

CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:N
CVSS Score: 8.2

Product Status

Vendor i18next
Product i18next-fs-backend
Versions
  • Version < 2.6.4 is affected

References

Problem Types

  • CWE-73: External Control of File Name or Path CWE
  • CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') CWE