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DirectusApplication · Monospace

CVE-2026-35441

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-04-06
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 11.17.0 or later.
See remediation →
71/100
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
Directus is a real-time API and App dashboard for managing SQL database content. Prior to 11.17.0, Directus' GraphQL endpoints (/graphql and /graphql/system) did not deduplicate resolver invocations within a single request. An authenticated user could exploit GraphQL aliasing to repeat an expensive relational query many times in a single request, forcing the server to execute a large number of independent complex database queries concurrently, multiplying database load linearly with the number of aliases. The existing token limit on GraphQL queries still permitted enough aliases for significant resource exhaustion, while the relational depth limit applied per alias without reducing the total number executed. Rate limiting is disabled by default, meaning no built-in throttle prevented this from causing CPU, memory, and I/O exhaustion that could degrade or crash the service. Any authenticated user, including those with minimal read-only permissions, could trigger this condition. This vulnerability is fixed in 11.17.0.

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

Directus versions before 11.17.0 have a vulnerability in GraphQL endpoints where resolver invocations are not deduplicated within a single request. Authenticated users can exploit GraphQL aliasing to repeat expensive relational queries many times in a single request, causing database load to multiply linearly with the number of aliases. Combined with default-disabled rate limiting, this allows resource exhaustion (CPU, memory, I/O) potentially crashing the service.

MitigationUpgrade to Directus 11.17.0 or later, and enable/configure rate limiting on GraphQL endpoints as an additional 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
DirectusApplication
Affected:< 11.17.0

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
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

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

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 Directus version
    Retrieve the installed Directus version (typically via admin UI, API endpoint, or package.json file in the installation directory) and compare it to 11.17.0. Any version below 11.17.0 is affected.
    Affected if The installed version is below 11.17.0
  2. Verify GraphQL is accessible
    Confirm that the GraphQL endpoint is enabled and accessible in the Directus instance (check configuration settings or attempt to reach the /graphql endpoint with valid credentials).
    Affected if GraphQL is enabled and reachable with authenticated access
  3. Confirm authenticated access to GraphQL
    Verify that regular authenticated users (not just admins) can access the GraphQL API. The vulnerability exploits authenticated user privileges.
    Affected if Non-admin authenticated users can submit GraphQL queries

If Directus is below version 11.17.0 and GraphQL is accessible to authenticated users, the environment is affected by this vulnerability.

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 11.17.0 or later
Fixed in 11.17.0
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to Directus 11.17.0 or later, and enable/configure rate limiting on GraphQL endpoints as an additional defense-in-depth measure.

Recommended fix High confidence

Directus 11.17.0

  1. 1. Back up your Directus database and configuration files before any upgrade.
  2. 2. Review the Directus 11.17.0 release notes for any breaking changes specific to your configuration.
  3. 3. Upgrade Directus to version 11.17.0 or later using your existing deployment method (npm, Docker, etc.).
  4. 4. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the Directus version in the admin UI or via API.
  5. 5. Test GraphQL endpoint functionality to confirm normal operation.
  6. 6. Consider enabling rate limiting as an additional defense-in-depth measure, though the fix addresses the root cause.
Caveat Review 11.17.0 release notes for any breaking changes; minor version upgrades typically have minimal compatibility impact

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

Fix this in Directus Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
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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-2026-35441 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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