● High · CVSS 8.7

How to Fix CVE-2026-31844: Authenticated SQL Injection in Koha displayby parameter of suggestion.pl

Q: Is CVE-2026-31844 being actively exploited?

Not at the time of writing. It is not listed in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. That status can change, so monitor the vendor advisory and the KEV catalog if the system is exposed.

Q: How severe is CVE-2026-31844?

CVSS rates it 8.7 (High). Use that score to set your patch priority next to the other items in your queue.

Q: Do I have to take Koha offline to apply the patch?

It depends on the deployment. High-availability or clustered installs can usually patch one node at a time with no full outage. Standalone installs typically need a short restart. Always follow the vendor's documented upgrade steps.

Q: What if my vulnerability scanner still flags CVE-2026-31844 after I patch?

Re-run the scan after a service restart, then confirm the scanner's plugin set is up to date. Some scanners detect by banner version only and lag the official fix metadata by a release.

Other vulnerabilities in the same area that are worth patching alongside this one:

How to Fix CVE-2026-23883: Use-After-Free in FreeRDP — Use-After-Free in FreeRDP
How to Fix CVE-2026-34978: cups (Bundle Sibling) — cups (Bundle Sibling)
How to Fix CVE-2026-6594: Improperly controlled modification of object prototype in merge , Improperly controlled modification of object prototype in merge
How to Fix CVE-2026-39825: Inconsistent Interpretation of HTTP Requests ('HTTP Request/Response Smuggling') , Inconsistent Interpretation of HTTP Requests ('HTTP Request/Response Smuggling')
How to Fix CVE-2026-3670: Improper authorization in dGEN1 , Improper authorization in dGEN1

*By Sai Kiran Pandrala*

⚡ At a glance


Severity	CVSS 8.7, High
Actively exploited?	No
Affected	Koha Community Koha (24.11.0 < 24.11.12, 25.05.0 < 25.05.07, 25.11.0 < 25.11.01)
Fixed in	24.11.12, 25.05.07, 25.11.01
Type (CWE)	CWE-89: CWE-89 Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an SQL Command ('SQL Injection')

What is CVE-2026-31844?

An authenticated SQL Injection vulnerability (CWE-89) exists in the Koha staff interface in the /cgi-bin/koha/suggestion/suggestion.pl endpoint due to improper validation of the displayby parameter used by the GetDistinctValues functionality. A low-privileged staff user can inject arbitrary SQL queries via crafted requests to this parameter, allowing execution of unintended SQL statements and exposure of sensitive database information. Successful exploitation may lead to full compromise of the backend database, including disclosure or modification of stored data.

In practical terms, a successful attacker gets SQL injection that can read or modify the backing database. There is no confirmed in-the-wild exploitation listed in CISA's KEV catalog at the time of writing, but the CVSS rating still warrants prompt patching.

Am I affected?

You're affected if you run Koha Community Koha at any version in the Affected row above. Use these probes to find your installed build:


# Confirm the installed version via your package manager
dpkg -l | grep -i koha   # Debian/Ubuntu
rpm -qa | grep -i koha   # RHEL/CentOS/Rocky

How to fix CVE-2026-31844

The primary fix is to upgrade to the patched build listed in the Fixed in row above (24.11.12, 25.05.07, 25.11.01). Pick the platform that matches your install and run the commands below.

Linux (Ubuntu / Debian)


sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install --only-upgrade koha
# Confirm the installed version meets or exceeds 24.11.12
dpkg -s koha | grep ^Version

Linux (RHEL / CentOS / Rocky)


sudo dnf upgrade --security koha -y
rpm -q koha

Windows (PowerShell, admin)


# Try winget first
winget upgrade --id 'Koha Community.Koha' --silent --accept-source-agreements --accept-package-agreements
# If winget does not know the product, download the patched installer from the vendor and:
Start-Process -FilePath "$env:TEMP\Koha-24.11.12.msi" -ArgumentList '/qn /norestart' -Wait

PowerShell script (Windows) - detect, back up, upgrade, verify, log


# Run as Administrator
$ErrorActionPreference = 'Stop'
$log = "$env:ProgramData\Koha-Patch-CVE-2026-31844.log"
function Write-Log($msg) { "$(Get-Date -Format s)  $msg" | Tee-Object -FilePath $log -Append }

Write-Log "Starting CVE-2026-31844 remediation for Koha Community Koha"

# 1. Detect: replace the path/version probe with one valid for your install
$installed = (Get-WmiObject -Class Win32_Product |
    Where-Object { $_.Name -like '*Koha*' } |
    Select-Object -First 1 -ExpandProperty Version)
Write-Log "Detected version: $installed"

if (-not $installed) {
    Write-Log "Product not installed on this host; nothing to do."
    return
}
if ([version]$installed -ge [version]'24.11.12') {
    Write-Log "Already at fixed version $installed; no action needed."
    return
}

# 2. Backup configuration to a timestamped folder
$backup = "$env:ProgramData\Koha-Backup-$(Get-Date -Format yyyyMMdd-HHmm)"
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path $backup -Force | Out-Null
# Adjust the source path to match your install
$src = "$env:ProgramFiles\Koha Community\Koha"
if (Test-Path $src) { Copy-Item -Path $src -Destination $backup -Recurse -Force }
Write-Log "Backed up config to $backup"

# 3. Apply the patched installer (place the verified file on a share or staging path)
$installer = "$env:TEMP\Koha-24.11.12.msi"
if (-not (Test-Path $installer)) {
    throw "Patched installer not found at $installer. Stage it from your software repo first."
}
Start-Process msiexec.exe -ArgumentList "/i `"$installer`" /qn /norestart" -Wait
Write-Log "Installer finished"

# 4. Verify
$verify = (Get-WmiObject -Class Win32_Product |
    Where-Object { $_.Name -like '*Koha*' } |
    Select-Object -First 1 -ExpandProperty Version)
if ([version]$verify -ge [version]'24.11.12') {
    Write-Log "SUCCESS: now at $verify (>= 24.11.12)"
} else {
    Write-Log "FAILURE: still at $verify after install"
    exit 1
}

Bash script (Linux) - detect, back up, upgrade, verify, log


#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail
LOG=/var/log/koha-patch-cve-2026-31844.log
log()  { echo "$(date -Iseconds)  $*" | tee -a "$LOG"; }

log "Starting CVE-2026-31844 remediation for Koha Community Koha"

# 1. Detect installed version (works for deb and rpm packages)
if command -v dpkg >/dev/null && dpkg -s koha >/dev/null 2>&1; then
    CURRENT=$(dpkg-query -W -f='${Version}' koha)
    PKG_MGR=apt
elif command -v rpm >/dev/null && rpm -q koha >/dev/null 2>&1; then
    CURRENT=$(rpm -q --queryformat '%{VERSION}' koha)
    PKG_MGR=dnf
else
    log "koha not installed via apt or rpm; check your package manager or vendor instructions."
    exit 0
fi
log "Detected: koha=$CURRENT (manager=$PKG_MGR)"

# 2. Backup config
BACKUP=/var/backups/koha-$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M)
mkdir -p "$BACKUP"
for d in /etc/koha /etc/${pkg%%-*} ; do
    [ -d "$d" ] && cp -a "$d" "$BACKUP/" && log "Backed up $d to $BACKUP"
done

# 3. Upgrade
if [ "$PKG_MGR" = apt ]; then
    sudo apt-get update -y
    sudo apt-get install --only-upgrade -y koha
else
    sudo dnf upgrade --security -y koha
fi

# 4. Verify
if [ "$PKG_MGR" = apt ]; then
    NEW=$(dpkg-query -W -f='${Version}' koha)
else
    NEW=$(rpm -q --queryformat '%{VERSION}' koha)
fi
log "After upgrade: $NEW"

# Optionally compare against 24.11.12 with dpkg --compare-versions or sort -V
log "Done. Restart the affected service if the package install did not."

If you can't patch immediately

These are runnable hardening commands. They reduce blast radius but they're not a replacement for the vendor patch.

Block obvious SQL injection patterns with a WAF rule


# ModSecurity / OWASP CRS-style rule
SecRule ARGS "@rx (?i)(union(.|\n)+?select|select(.|\n)+?from|insert(.|\n)+?into)" \
  "id:900100,phase:2,deny,log,msg:'SQLi pattern blocked'"

How to verify the fix worked

Run the version probe again and confirm the running build matches the Fixed in row above.


# Confirm the running build matches the patched version listed by the vendor
# Example for Linux package installs:
dpkg -l | grep -i "koha"   # Debian/Ubuntu
rpm -qa | grep -i "koha"   # RHEL/CentOS/Rocky

Expected output: the package version should meet or exceed 24.11.12.

Then re-run any vulnerability scanner you used previously and confirm the finding for CVE-2026-31844 has cleared. Sweep your logs for the indicators of compromise listed in the vendor or CISA advisory, especially if the system was internet-reachable during the disclosure window.

Frequently asked questions

Is CVE-2026-31844 being actively exploited?