Findings

Vulnerability · CVE-2026-42857

Open edX Platform enables the authoring and delivery of online learning at any scale.

Published May 11, 2026 · corrected/updated Jun 17, 2026 · openedx openedx · evidence confidence high

Open edX Platform enables the authoring and delivery of online learning at any scale. The HTML sanitizer clean_thread_html_body() used for discussion notification emails fails to remove tags from user-generated discussion post content. This content is rendered with Django's |safe template filter in email notification templates, allowing any enrolled student to inject arbitrary CSS into email notifications sent to other users. This enables email tracking (IP address disclosure), content spoofing, and phishing attacks. This vulnerability is fixed with commit cddc25cd791bb78f76833896e4778f668861df12.

Grounded briefings

Catalog interpretations for three audiences. Each brief cites ingested metadata and the original advisories below. They are not independent research and they do not invent exploit steps.

Executive

CVE-2026-42857 is a medium public vulnerability record for openedx openedx. It is not currently listed in the CISA Known Exploited catalog. Check the linked vendor or CERT advisories for patch status. This summary is a catalog interpretation of the ingested metadata and cites the original advisories below.

System administrator

Identify whether openedx openedx is in your estate, then compare installed versions with the affected ranges. Affected packages or ranges on record: openedx/openedx. Check the linked vendor or CERT advisories for patch status. Prefer the vendor or distribution advisory linked in Sources before changing production systems. This is a catalog interpretation, not a runbook.

Security analyst

Signals on file: CVSS 5.4, EPSS 0.3%. It is not currently listed in the CISA Known Exploited catalog. Weakness classes: CWE-79. Sources contributing to this record: cve_org, epss, nvd. Public exploit references, when present, are outbound links only and are not proof of active exploitation. This is a catalog interpretation of stored metadata.

Exploitation and remediation

  • Exploitation evidence

    Not listed as known exploited in CISA KEV. Not in CISA KEV or VulnCheck KEV.

  • Patch and remediation

    No required-action text is stored yet. Use the vendor or CERT links in Sources for patch availability.

  • Safe detection guidance

    Compare installed versions with the affected ranges below and verify the advisory from the original publisher. This site stores metadata and outbound links only; it does not ship exploit code or proof-of-concept payloads.

Code

The project this record applies to. Exploit listings stay in References.

Timeline

Detection, updates, and resolution for this record.

  1. May 11, 2026 · NIST NVD

    Detected

    Open edX Platform enables the authoring and delivery of online learning at any scale. The HTML sanitizer clean_thread_html_body() used for discussion notification emails fails to remove tags from user-generated discussion post content. This content is rendered with Django's |safe template filter in email notification templates, allowing any enrolled student to inject arbitrary CSS into email notif

  2. Jun 17, 2026 · NIST NVD

    Updated

    Open edX Platform enables the authoring and delivery of online learning at any scale. The HTML sanitizer clean_thread_html_body() used for discussion notification emails fails to remove tags from user-generated discussion post content. This content is rendered with Django's |safe template filter in email notification templates, allowing any enrolled student to inject arbitrary CSS into email notif

Affected

  • cpe openedx/openedxversion unspecified

Sources

  • CVE.orgVulnerability recordCVE-2026-42857

    Official CVE identifier

    cve.org
  • FIRST EPSSExploitation probabilityCVE-2026-42857

    30-day exploitation probability 0.3%

    first.org
  • NIST NVDVulnerability recordCVE-2026-42857

    Open edX Platform enables the authoring and delivery of online learning at any scale. The HTML sanitizer clean_thread_html_body() used for discussion notification emails fails to remove tags from user-generated discussion post content. This content is rendered with Django

    nvd.nist.gov

References