pgAdmin 4 has deserialization of untrusted data in its FileBackedSessionManager
Deserialization of untrusted data (CWE-502) in pgAdmin 4 FileBackedSessionManager.
The session manager performed unsafe deserialization of session-file contents (using Python's standard object-serialization module) before performing any HMAC integrity check. Any file dropped into the sessions directory was deserialized unconditionally. An authenticated user with write access to the sessions directory (whether by misconfiguration or in combination with another path-traversal flaw) could plant a crafted serialized payload to achieve operating-system level remote code execution under the pgAdmin process identity.
Fix prepends a 64-byte hex SHA-256 HMAC over the session body, computed with SECRET_KEY, and verifies it via hmac.compare_digest before any deserialization. The check is raised (rather than asserted) on empty SECRET_KEY so it is not stripped under -O.
This issue affects pgAdmin 4: before 9.15.
Affected software
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| Platform | Package | Vulnerable versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Python (PyPI) | pgadmin4 | < 9.15 | 9.15 |
References
- CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H- Weakness (CWE)
CWE-502- Platform
- Python (PyPI)
- Package
pgadmin4- Disclosed
- 11.05.2026
- Updated
- 11.10.2026 15:17
Sources and licenses
OSV / GitHub Advisory Database - PYSEC-2026-2865 - PyPA Advisory Database; CC BY 4.0
OSV / GitHub Advisory Database - GHSA-4rhg-h8f2-v4jm - CC BY 4.0
Vulnerability history: pgadmin4
All published vulnerabilities of this package (Python (PyPI)), newest first. Shows whether this is a one-off slip or a package that needs watching.
- Total entries
- 28
- First → latest
- 03.2022 05.2026
- Without a fix
- 0
- Exploited in attacks
- 0
Severity breakdown
- Critical 6
- High 14
- Medium 8
Disclosures per year
- 2022: 2
- 2023: 3
- 2024: 5
- 2025: 9
- 2026: 9
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pgAdmin 4 has deserialization of untrusted data in its FileBackedSessionManager this entry
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