dbcve.org
PayloadApplication · Payloadcms

CVE-2026-25574

MEDIUM · 5.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-02-06
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 3.74.0 or later.
See remediation →
60/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Payload is a free and open source headless content management system. Prior to 3.74.0, a cross-collection Insecure Direct Object Reference (IDOR) vulnerability exists in the payload-preferences internal collection. In multi-auth collection environments using Postgres or SQLite with default serial/auto-increment IDs, authenticated users from one auth collection can read and delete preferences belonging to users in different auth collections when their numeric IDs collide. This vulnerability has been patched in v3.74.0.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

This is a cross-collection IDOR vulnerability in Payload CMS's internal payload-preferences collection. In multi-auth collection environments using PostgreSQL or SQLite with default serial/auto-increment IDs, authenticated users from one auth collection can read and delete preferences belonging to users in different auth collections when their numeric user IDs collide, due to insufficient authorization checks on cross-collection preference access.

MitigationUpgrade to Payload CMS v3.74.0 or later to apply the security patch. In multi-tenant or multi-auth collection setups, audit existing user ID ranges and implement additional authorization layer checks as a defense-in-depth measure.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
PayloadApplication
Affected:< 3.74.0

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check installed Payload CMS version
    Run `npm list @payloadcms/db-postgres` or `npm list @payloadcms/db-sqlite` to see the installed version, or check package.json for the payload version
    Affected if The installed Payload CMS version is below 3.74.0
  2. Identify the database adapter in use
    Inspect your payload config file (payload.config.ts or similar) for the db adapter import - look for @payloadcms/db-postgres or @payloadcms/db-sqlite
    Affected if Using PostgreSQL or SQLite adapter; MongoDB is not affected by this specific IDOR variant
  3. Verify multi-auth collection configuration
    Examine your payload config for multiple collection definitions that have `auth: true` enabled
    Affected if More than one auth-enabled collection exists in the configuration
  4. Check ID strategy for auth collections
    Review the id field configuration in each auth-enabled collection - look for `type: 'autoincrement'` or default serial behavior in Postgres/SQLite
    Affected if Using default auto-increment/serial IDs that can produce colliding numeric values across different collections
  5. Audit user ID ranges across collections
    Query each auth collection's user IDs to check for numeric overlap: SELECT id FROM users_<collection1> INTERSECT SELECT id FROM users_<collection2>
    Affected if User IDs from different auth collections share the same numeric values, creating the collision condition for exploitation

You are affected if running Payload CMS < 3.74.0 with PostgreSQL or SQLite in a multi-auth collection setup where different collections have users with colliding numeric IDs.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 3.74.0 or later
Fixed in 3.74.0
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to Payload CMS v3.74.0 or later to apply the security patch. In multi-tenant or multi-auth collection setups, audit existing user ID ranges and implement additional authorization layer checks as a defense-in-depth measure.

Recommended fix High confidence

3.74.0

  1. 1. Identify the current Payload CMS version in use (check package.json or package-lock.json)
  2. 2. Review Payload's upgrade documentation for migrating to version 3.74.0
  3. 3. Create a backup of the database and application files before upgrading
  4. 4. In a non-production environment, run the upgrade: npm install [email protected]
  5. 5. Run any pending database migrations after the upgrade
  6. 6. Test the application functionality, particularly authentication and preference storage
  7. 7. After confirming the upgrade works correctly in staging, apply the same steps to production

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Payload Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
13.0 hours of engineering $2,280
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,648.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2026-25574 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2026-25574 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data