VulnerabilityPublished 13 Mar 2026Updated 16 Mar 2026

CVE-2026-32621: @apollo federation-internals · Prototype Pollution

Affects @apollo federation-internalsSource CVE Database V5

Compare

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 9.9 Critical · fixed in 2.13.2 : patch @apollo federation-internals as a priority.

Data as of 30 Oct 2026, 11:52 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

9.9Critical

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

Contested

Critical score, yet low EPSS after six months

EPSS: 0.5% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 44% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 2.13.2, 2.12.3, 2.11.6 +2

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:L

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: Low
User Interaction: None
Scope: Changed
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: High
Availability: Low

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: Low: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide basic user capabilities that could normally affect only settings and files owned by a user. Alternatively, an attacker with Low privileges may have the ability to cause an impact only to non-sensitive resources.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Changed: An exploited vulnerability can affect resources beyond the security scope managed by the security authority of the vulnerable component. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are different and managed by different security authorities.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: High: There is a total loss of integrity, or a complete loss of protection. For example, the attacker is able to modify any/all files protected by the impacted component. Alternatively, only some files can be modified, but malicious modification would present a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component.
Availability: Low: Performance is reduced or there are interruptions in resource availability. Even if repeated exploitation of the vulnerability is possible, the attacker does not have the ability to completely deny service to legitimate users. The resources in the impacted component are either partially available all of the time, or fully available only some of the time, but overall there is no direct, serious consequence to the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 13 Mar 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: evidence found.
Public exploit code: GitHub proofs of concept
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), GitHub proofs of concept, the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 30 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Upgrade to a fixed release listed under Affected software.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
@apollofederation-internals	Affected >=2.13.0-preview.0 <2.13.2	Fixed in 2.13.2
@apollofederation-internals	Affected >=2.12.0-preview.0 <2.12.3	Fixed in 2.12.3
@apollofederation-internals	Affected >=2.11.0-preview.0 <2.11.6	Fixed in 2.11.6
@apollofederation-internals	Affected >=2.10.0-alpha.0 <2.10.5	Fixed in 2.10.5
@apollofederation-internals	Affected <2.9.6	Fixed in 2.9.6
@apollogateway	Affected >=2.13.0-preview.0 <2.13.2	Fixed in 2.13.2

AI-suggested

To mitigate this vulnerability, organizations should immediately upgrade Apollo Federation's federation-internals package to the fixed versions: 2.9.6, 2.10.5, 2.11.6, 2.12.3, or 2.13.2, depending on their current version. Additionally, implement strict input validation and sanitization on GraphQL queries, especially on field aliases and variable names, to prevent injection of prototype-inheritable properties. Monitor and audit subgraph responses for unexpected or malformed JSON payloads that could indicate attempts to exploit prototype pollution. Employ runtime application self-protection (RASP) or Web Application Firewalls (WAF) with custom rules to detect and block suspicious GraphQL operations targeting prototype properties. Limit privileges of clients interacting with the gateway to reduce the attack surface. Finally, maintain a robust incident response plan to quickly address any signs of exploitation or compromise related to this vulnerability.

Description

Apollo Federation is an architecture for declaratively composing APIs into a unified graph. Prior to 2.9.6, 2.10.5, 2.11.6, 2.12.3, and 2.13.2, a vulnerability exists in query plan execution within the gateway that may allow pollution of Object.prototype in certain scenarios. A malicious client may be able to pollute Object.prototype in gateway directly by crafting operations with field aliases and/or variable names that target prototype-inheritable properties. Alternatively, if a subgraph were to be compromised by a malicious actor, they may be able to pollute Object.prototype in gateway by crafting JSON response payloads that target prototype-inheritable properties. This vulnerability is fixed in 2.9.6, 2.10.5, 2.11.6, 2.12.3, and 2.13.2.

Impact

The impact of this vulnerability is significant for organizations relying on Apollo Federation to unify their GraphQL APIs. Successful exploitation can allow attackers to modify the Object.prototype in the gateway, potentially enabling arbitrary code execution, unauthorized data access, or disruption of service. This undermines the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the gateway and the connected subgraphs. Since the gateway is a central component in API orchestration, compromise can cascade, affecting multiple backend services and exposing sensitive data or critical business logic. Attackers with low privileges can exploit this remotely without user interaction, increasing the risk of widespread exploitation. Organizations in sectors with high API usage, such as technology, finance, healthcare, and e-commerce, face heightened risks of data breaches, service outages, and reputational damage if this vulnerability is exploited.

CWE-1321Improperly Controlled Modification of Object Prototype Attributes (Prototype Pollution) (opens in a new tab)
Variant weakness
The product receives input from an upstream component that specifies attributes that are to be initialized or updated in an object, but it does not properly control modifications of attributes of the object prototype.
Implementation
By freezing the object prototype first (for example, Object.freeze(Object.prototype)), modification of the prototype becomes impossible.
Architecture and Design
By blocking modifications of attributes that resolve to object prototype, such as proto or prototype, this weakness can be mitigated.
Implementation · Input Validation
When handling untrusted objects, validating using a schema can be used.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Mass Assignment (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V5.1.2 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Accessing Functionality Not Properly Constrained by ACLs (opens in a new tab)
Exploiting Incorrectly Configured Access Control Security Levels (opens in a new tab)
Manipulating User-Controlled Variables (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

github.com/apollographql/federation/security/advisories/GHSA-pfjj-6f4p-rvmh (opens in a new tab)

Community reviews

Loading reviews…

Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 20 Mar 2026, 23:21 UTC

Public exploits and detectionGitHub proofs of concept

WeaknessesCWE-1321

Technical details

References

Community reviews

Related threats