CVE-2026-85271
Open edX Platform: Stored CSS Injection in Email Digest Notifications via Unsanitized Thread Title (incomplete patch of CVE-2026-42857)
Open edX Platform enables the authoring and delivery of online learning at any scale. From Redwood until Ulmo and Verawood.1, the add_additional_attributes_to_notifications function in openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/email/utils.py assigns notification content without sanitizing discussion-title values produced by get_notification_content in openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/base_notification.py. An enrolled student can place CSS-capable markup in the post_title value supplied by lms/djangoapps/discussion/rest_api/discussions_notifications.py. Digest and batched-email rendering then passes that value through openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/templates/notifications/digest_content.html as safe HTML, allowing email-open tracking and content spoofing or phishing when another learner opens a CSS-rendering client. The immediate-email path is not affected because it strips title markup and renders a separately sanitized body. This issue is fixed in Ulmo and Verawood.1.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges needed
- None
- User interaction
- Required
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
6.1
Open edX Platform: Stored CSS Injection in Email Digest Notifications via Unsanitized Thread Title (incomplete patch of CVE-2026-42857)
Open edX Platform enables the authoring and delivery of online learning at any scale. From Redwood until Ulmo and Verawood.1, the add_additional_attributes_to_notifications function in openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/email/utils.py assigns notification content without sanitizing discussion-title values produced by get_notification_content in openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/base_notification.py. An enrolled student can place CSS-capable markup in the post_title value supplied by lms/djangoapps/discussion/rest_api/discussions_notifications.py. Digest and batched-email rendering then passes that value through openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/templates/notifications/digest_content.html as safe HTML, allowing email-open tracking and content spoofing or phishing when another learner opens a CSS-rendering client. The immediate-email path is not affected because it strips title markup and renders a separately sanitized body. This issue is fixed in Ulmo and Verawood.1.
- Record
CVE-2026-85271- CVSS 3.1
- 6.1 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-79
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2026-83443
6.1
Open edX Platform enables the authoring and delivery of online learning at any scale. From Redwood until Ulmo and Verawood.1, the add_additional_attributes_to_notifications function in openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/email/utils.py assigns notification content without sanitizing discussion-title values produced by get_notification_content in openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/base_notification.py. An enrolled student can place CSS-capable markup in the post_title value supplied by lms/djangoapps/discussion/rest_api/discussions_notifications.py. Digest and batched-email rendering then passes that value through openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/templates/notifications/digest_content.html as safe HTML, allowing email-open tracking and content spoofing or phishing when another learner opens a CSS-rendering client. The immediate-email path is not affected because it strips title markup and renders a separately sanitized body. This issue is fixed in Ulmo and Verawood.1.
- Record
EUVD-2026-83443- CVSS 3.1
- 6.1 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N - Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
6.1
Open edX Platform enables the authoring and delivery of online learning at any scale. From Redwood until Ulmo and Verawood.1, the add_additional_attributes_to_notifications function in openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/email/utils.py assigns notification content without sanitizing discussion-title values produced by get_notification_content in openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/base_notification.py. An enrolled student can place CSS-capable markup in the post_title value supplied by lms/djangoapps/discussion/rest_api/discussions_notifications.py. Digest and batched-email rendering then passes that value through openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/templates/notifications/digest_content.html as safe HTML, allowing email-open tracking and content spoofing or phishing when another learner opens a CSS-rendering client. The immediate-email path is not affected because it strips title markup and renders a separately sanitized body. This issue is fixed in Ulmo and Verawood.1.
- Record
CVE-2026-85271- CVSS 3.1
- 6.1 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-79
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV
6.1
Open edX Platform: Stored CSS Injection in Email Digest Notifications via Unsanitized Thread Title (incomplete patch of CVE-2026-42857)
Open edX Platform enables the authoring and delivery of online learning at any scale. From Redwood until Ulmo and Verawood.1, the add_additional_attributes_to_notifications function in openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/email/utils.py assigns notification content without sanitizing discussion-title values produced by get_notification_content in openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/base_notification.py. An enrolled student can place CSS-capable markup in the post_title value supplied by lms/djangoapps/discussion/rest_api/discussions_notifications.py. Digest and batched-email rendering then passes that value through openedx/core/djangoapps/notifications/templates/notifications/digest_content.html as safe HTML, allowing email-open tracking and content spoofing or phishing when another learner opens a CSS-rendering client. The immediate-email path is not affected because it strips title markup and renders a separately sanitized body. This issue is fixed in Ulmo and Verawood.1.
- Record
CVE-2026-85271- CVSS 3.1
- 6.1 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-79
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| first indexed | CVE List, EUVD, NVD, OSV |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2026-85271 is a medium vulnerability (CVSS 6.1) in Openedx Openedx-platform, published September 18, 2026. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 0.35%, the 29th percentile. No source names a fixed version.
References
github.com/openedx/openedx-platform/security/advisories/GHSA-rv5w-f4r5-h77g
github.com/openedx/openedx-platform/commit/2af03d21b4142e53e375c7f3699b313e92ec5121
github.com/openedx/openedx-platform/commit/52f2b3bb3e6fac2601c29e8f926c81498d20bb0b
github.com/openedx/openedx-platform/commit/5eae6e51a8797cd3b87cc132f5de73d52561c4d7
github.com/openedx/openedx-platform/releases/tag/release/ulmo.4
github.com/openedx/openedx-platform/releases/tag/release/verawood.1
github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/tree/main/cves/2026/85xxx/CVE-2026-85271.json
nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-85271