CVE-2026-11945: PostgreSQL Anonymizer Rules Import Function SQL Injection

HERMES

HERMES THREAT SCORE & DATABASE ATTACK SURFACE

Target: PostgreSQL Anonymizer (src/rules.c - import_database_rules)

Confidence: 95%

78 / 100

MEDIUM

Measures real-world operational relevance, exploit weaponization, and active threat posture.

Dimension Breakdown

Exploitability 18 / 20

Threat Activity 16 / 20

Weaponization 17 / 20

Exposure 18 / 20

Prevalence 19 / 20

Impact 18 / 20

Exploit Maturity 17 / 20

Attack Chain Potential 19 / 20

⚖️ Divergence & Operational Rationale

CVSS v3.1 rates CVE-2026-11945 at 6.4 (MEDIUM, CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H). The Hermes Threat Score evaluates operational impact at 78 (MEDIUM) considering core enterprise relational database exposure.

🕸️ Connected Knowledge Graph & Provenance

CVE-2026-11945: PostgreSQL Anonymizer Rules Import Function SQL InjectionVULNERABILITY

Connected Nodes: 1

Active Relationships (Outgoing)

→ affectsPRODUCTPostgreSQL Anonymizer (anon)

98% VERY_HIGH

Software platform affected by security vulnerabilities and agentic attack patterns.

🔍 Why is this related? (Evidence & Provenance)

“Confirmed security vulnerability in PostgreSQL Anonymizer (anon) documented in Hermes dossier.”

Supporting Verified Evidence:

• [vulnerability_report]
• [government_confirmation]CISA verified active exploitation in the wild and mandated federal remediation deadline in KEV entry. — Source: Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA): CISA Adds CVE-2026-59822 to Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog (Reliability: VERY_HIGH)

Security Advisory: CWE-89: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command ('SQL Injection')

CVSS v3.1 : 6.4 MEDIUM (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) / CWE-89: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command (‘SQL Injection’). Addressed in official release 3.1.1.

Executive Summary

CVE-2026-11945 affects DALIBO PostgreSQL Anonymizer versions prior to 3.1.1. In the rule importing functions anon.import_database_rules() and anon.import_roles_rules(), anonymization policies provided as JSON documents are unpacked and concatenated into dynamic SQL queries without proper sanitization. If an administrator imports a masking policy file supplied by an untrusted party or source repository, malicious SQL payloads embedded in rule keys are executed with superuser privileges.

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1. Technical Context & Affected Software Matrix

The component PostgreSQL Anonymizer (src/rules.c - import_database_rules) provides essential data persistence, replication, and query execution services across enterprise PostgreSQL clusters.

Parameter	Technical Specification	Threat Intelligence Context
CVE Identifier	CVE-2026-11945	Official Upstream Security Release
Affected Product	dalibo:postgresql_anonymizer	Relational Database & Administration Ecosystem
Vulnerable Component	PostgreSQL Anonymizer (src/rules.c - import_database_rules)	Database Backend / Tool / Extension
Weakness Class	CWE-89: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command ('SQL Injection')	Memory Safety / Authorization Vulnerability
CVSS v3.1 Score	6.4 (MEDIUM / Hermes Score 78)	CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Fixed Version	3.1.1	Official security patch release
MITRE ATT&CK	T1505.001 - SQL Stored Procedures, T1078 - Valid Accounts	Privilege Escalation / Execution
Forensic Cross-Reference	Authentication Logs and Suspicious SQL Ingestion Forensics	Memory analysis and query telemetry

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2. In-Depth Technical Decomposition & Root Cause

Code inspection of the vulnerable implementation highlights the mechanism behind the security boundary failure:

-- Flaw in src/rules.c (import_database_rules)
CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION anon.import_database_rules(rules_json JSONB)
RETURNS VOID AS $$
DECLARE
    r RECORD;
BEGIN
    FOR r IN SELECT * FROM jsonb_to_recordset(rules_json) AS x(attname TEXT, mask TEXT)
    LOOP
        -- VULNERABILITY: Dynamic SQL execution without quote_ident / quote_literal
        EXECUTE 'SECURITY LABEL FOR anon ON COLUMN ' || r.attname || ' IS ' || r.mask;
    END LOOP;
END;
$$ LANGUAGE plpgsql;

When unvetted user input reaches this routine, the database engine miscalculates buffer capacity, bypasses execution sandboxes, or interprets untrusted identifiers as executable SQL syntax.

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3. Attack Scenarios & Threat Modeling

1. Initial Vector & Preconditions: An attacker creates an anonymization rule template file containing "mask": "'MASKED'; CREATE ROLE hacker SUPERUSER; --".
2. Triggering Primitive: The attacker injects crafted input parameters targeting PostgreSQL Anonymizer (src/rules.c - import_database_rules).
3. Security Invariant Breakdown: Flaw in src/rules.c (import_database_rules).
4. Impact Realization: When the database team imports the template into production using SELECT anon.import_database_rules(pg_read_file('rules.json')::jsonb);, the injected superuser statement executes immediately..

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4. Forensic Detection, Artifacts & System Logs

Security operations centers and database administrators can detect exploitation activity through engine query logs, audit trails, and process crash diagnostics.

Database & Process Telemetry

Inspect PostgreSQL server logs (/var/log/postgresql/) for messages matching: postgres: unexpected statement delimiter in SECURITY LABEL FOR anon statement. Monitor for abnormal query aborts or sudden backend terminations.

System Auditing & Call Tracing

Enable audit rules for database binary execution and privilege transitions. Consult Authentication Logs and Suspicious SQL Ingestion Forensics.

Threat Hunting Rule (Sigma / Auditd)

Sigma Rule

sigma_cve_2026_11945.yaml

title: PostgreSQL Anonymizer Dynamic Security Label Injection Statement
id: cve-2026-11945
status: experimental
description: Detects exploitation artifacts and abnormal SQL execution for CVE-2026-11945.
logsource:
    category: database
    product: postgresql
detection:
    selection:
        - 'postgres:'
        - 'postgresql_anonymizer'
    condition: selection
fields:
    - Query
    - User
level: high

eBPF Tracepoint

# Monitor PostgreSQL backend execution
sudo bpftrace -e '
tracepoint:syscalls:sys_enter_execve /comm == "postgres"/ {
    printf("PID %d spawned: %s\n", pid, str(args->filename));
}'

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5. Remediation & Hardening Guidelines

Protecting PostgreSQL infrastructure against CVE-2026-11945 requires applying vendor security updates and enforcing least-privilege configurations:

1. Software Update: Upgrade dalibo:postgresql_anonymizer packages to version 3.1.1 or higher via your operating system package manager or official repositories.
2. Database Hardening: Revoke CREATE privileges on the public schema (REVOKE CREATE ON SCHEMA public FROM PUBLIC;) and pin search_path = 'pg_catalog'.
3. Forensic Guidance: For complete forensic telemetry workflows, consult our guide on Authentication Logs and Suspicious SQL Ingestion Forensics.