CVE Intelligence
Medium Injection

CVE-2026-18738 — Shlink CSV Formula Injection via Visit Export CLI

Shlink versions 5.0.0 through 5.1.5 contain a CSV formula injection vulnerability that allows unauthenticated remote attackers to plant spreadsheet formulas into exported visit data by supplying malicious values in User-Agent, Referer, or request path headers beginning with formula-triggering characters such as =, +, -, or @. Attackers can craft a single unauthenticated request against any short URL to embed DDE or WEBSERVICE formula payloads into CSV cells, which are then executed on an administrator's client machine when the exported CSV file is opened in a spreadsheet application that evaluates formulas.

Published Aug 3, 2026 · Updated Oct 15, 2026 · Sources: NIST National Vulnerability Database, CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP · CNA: VulnCheck

Who exploits it and how urgent it is

A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.

No exploitation signal in the sources consulted so far.
How the score was calculated
  • EPSS 0.5% (30-day exploitation probability)+6
  • Technical severity (medium)+3
  • Automatable exploitation (SSVC)+3

The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).

Triage

Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.

Exploitation
Not confirmed
Not in CISA KEV — an absence of record, not proof it is unexploited.
EPSS FIRST
0.49%
ahead of 41% of scored CVEs · Oct 15, 2026
Affects
Shlinkio
Shlink
CVSS base
4.7
Medium · 2 source(s)

CISA SSVC assessment CISA

Three decision points CISA publishes for the CVEs it assesses (SSVC 2.0.3). A stakeholder decision, not a severity score.

Exploitation
None
none · proof-of-concept · active
Automatable
Yes
can an attacker script the kill-chain steps
Technical impact
Partial
partial · total control of the vulnerable component

Remediation

Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.

No fix documented by the sources we poll. That does not mean none exists: check the vendor advisory.

First 24 hours

Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.

  1. Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Shlinkio Shlink).
  2. The attack is network-based and needs no privileges: restrict exposure (ACLs, VPN, WAF) until patched.
  3. No fix documented in the sources: reduce exposure and monitor the vendor advisory.
  4. Exploitation requires user interaction: tighten email/web filtering and warn affected users.
  5. Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (injection), errors and authentication anomalies.

Affected scope

Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.

VendorProductVersionsStatusSource
Shlinkio Shlink ≥ 5.0.0 and ≤ 5.1.5 Vulnerable CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP

Attack characteristics

The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.

Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
None
Availability
None

Every base score collected

Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.

ScoreVersionSeverityExpl.ImpactScored by
5.1 CVSS 4.0 Medium — — disclosure@vulncheck.com via NIST National Vulnerability Database
5.1 CVSS 4.0 Medium — — VulnCheck via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
4.7 CVSS 3.1 Medium 2.8 1.4 disclosure@vulncheck.com via NIST National Vulnerability Database
4.7 CVSS 3.1 Medium — — VulnCheck via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:N/A:N (score shown at the top: disclosure@vulncheck.com)

Weakness MITRE

Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.

CWE-1236 · CSV Injection

Other CVEs with this weakness →

Detection

Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.

  • Prioritize edge telemetry for the network-reachable component (proxy, WAF, IDS/IPS).
  • Look for parameters with command/query metacharacters and unexpected child processes of the service.
web/proxy/WAF logsnetwork IDS/IPSapplication logsendpoint telemetry (EDR)

Timeline

What happened to this CVE, newest first.

  • 2026
  • Affected products added · shlinkio/shlink
    Oct 15, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • SSVC assessment updated
    Oct 15, 2026 · CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP
  • Record published
    Oct 15, 2026
  • CVSS changed · 4.7
    Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Source status changed · → Deferred
    Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • Record created in this database
    Oct 15, 2026 · NIST National Vulnerability Database
  • CVE published
    Aug 3, 2026 · VulnCheck

Source activity

Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.

  • 1× Official description updated · Oct 15, 2026 – Oct 15, 2026

References

3 on the record

Elsewhere on this site

Shlinkio
every CVE for this vendor
Injection
same class
CWE-1236
other pages naming this weakness

Related CVEs (same products)

  • CVE-2026-92760 Shlink through 5.1.6 Mercure Token Authorization Bypass 29d
  • CVE-2026-18737 Shlink Blind SQL Injection via tags/stats orderBy Parameter Aug 3, 2026
  • CVE-2026-18736 Shlink Server-Side Request Forgery via Short URL Title Auto-Resolution Aug 3, 2026

Not in any source we poll

Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.

  • No fixed version, patch or mitigation documented.
  • No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
  • No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
  • No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.

Answered from this record

Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.

What should defenders know first?

CVE-2026-18738 is "Shlink CSV Formula Injection via Visit Export CLI", rated Medium. It affects Shlink (Shlinkio); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 4.7 describes technical severity. EPSS 0.49% estimates the probability of exploitation in 30 days; neither replaces your asset context. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.

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