CVE-2026-22785 is a critical command injection vulnerability identified in the orval tool, which generates type-safe JavaScript (TypeScript) clients from OpenAPI v3 or Swagger v2 specifications. The vulnerability exists in versions prior to 7.18.0 due to the MCP server generation logic relying on unsafe string manipulation that incorporates the 'summary' field from the OpenAPI specification without proper validation or escaping. This improper neutralization of special elements (CWE-77) allows an attacker to break out of the intended string literal context and inject arbitrary code. The injection occurs because the summary field is directly embedded into generated code without sanitization, enabling execution of malicious commands during client generation or server code creation. The vulnerability requires no authentication or user interaction and can be exploited remotely if an attacker can supply or influence the OpenAPI specification used by orval. The CVSS 4.0 vector (AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N) indicates network attack vector, low complexity, no privileges or user interaction needed, and high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Although no known exploits are reported in the wild, the critical severity and ease of exploitation make this a high-risk vulnerability. The issue was addressed in orval version 7.18.0 by implementing proper validation and escaping of the summary field to prevent code injection.

For European organizations, the impact of this vulnerability is significant, especially for those involved in software development, API client generation, or automated build pipelines using orval. Exploitation could lead to arbitrary code execution within development or CI/CD environments, potentially allowing attackers to compromise build servers, inject malicious code into software artifacts, or pivot into internal networks. This threatens confidentiality by exposing sensitive source code or credentials, integrity by tampering with generated clients or server code, and availability by disrupting build processes or causing system outages. Organizations relying on orval for generating API clients in critical applications, including financial services, healthcare, and government sectors, face heightened risks. The vulnerability could also facilitate supply chain attacks if malicious OpenAPI specifications are introduced into development workflows. Given the widespread adoption of JavaScript and TypeScript tooling in Europe, the threat surface is broad. The absence of known exploits currently provides a window for proactive mitigation but should not reduce urgency.

1. Immediately upgrade orval to version 7.18.0 or later, where the vulnerability is fixed. 2. Implement strict validation and sanitization of all OpenAPI specification inputs, especially the 'summary' field, before processing or incorporation into code generation. 3. Restrict the sources of OpenAPI specifications to trusted and verified origins to prevent injection of malicious specifications. 4. Isolate build and code generation environments to minimize impact if exploitation occurs, using containerization or dedicated build servers with limited network access. 5. Monitor development and CI/CD pipelines for unusual activity or unexpected code changes that could indicate exploitation attempts. 6. Educate development teams about the risks of injecting untrusted data into code generation tools and enforce secure coding practices. 7. Consider implementing runtime application self-protection (RASP) or endpoint detection to detect anomalous behavior in build environments. 8. Review and audit existing generated clients and server code for signs of injected malicious code if older orval versions were used.