● Critical · CVSS 9.8

How to Fix CVE-2026-8838: Code Injection RCE in Amazon Redshift connector for Python

Q: Is CVE-2026-8838 being exploited in the wild?

Public exploitation has not been confirmed by CISA at the time of writing. Treat the patch as time-sensitive anyway; reports often lag actual abuse.

Q: Will a WAF or IDS rule fully mitigate CVE-2026-8838?

No. Network-layer filters can reduce noise and slow opportunistic scanners, but they will not stop a determined attacker. The vendor patch is the only durable fix.

Q: Do I need to assume compromise if my Amazon Redshift connector for Python was internet-facing and unpatched?

For an unauthenticated RCE-class flaw exposed to the public internet during the known exploitation window, yes. Review logs, rotate credentials the process could access, and look for unexpected accounts, scheduled tasks, or outbound connections.

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

How to Fix CVE-2026-2637: Incorrect permission assignment in iBoysoft NTFS — Incorrect permission assignment in iBoysoft NTFS
How to Fix CVE-2026-2481: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') — Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')
How to Fix CVE-2026-30532: Critical Vulnerability in n/a , Critical Vulnerability in n/a
How to Fix CVE-2026-33397: Critical Vulnerability in angular-cli , Critical Vulnerability in angular-cli
How to Fix CVE-2026-22881: Critical Vulnerability in Cybozu Garoon , Critical Vulnerability in Cybozu Garoon

*By Sai Kiran Pandrala*

⚡ At a glance


Severity	CVSS 9.8 - Critical
Actively exploited?	Not currently listed in CISA KEV
Affected	0 <= 2.1.13
Fixed in	See vendor advisory
Type (CWE)	CWE-94: Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection')

What is CVE-2026-8838?

CVE-2026-8838 is a code injection flaw in Amazon Redshift connector for Python. Attacker-controlled input is evaluated as code by the application runtime, giving the attacker arbitrary execution inside the process. Vendor description: Unsafe use of Python's eval() on server-received data in the vector_in() function in amazon-redshift-python-driver before 2.1.14 allows a rogue server or man-in-the-middle actor to execute arbitrary code on the client. To remediate this issue, users should upgrade to version 2.1.14.

Why this CVE matters

Code injection against an application server is a direct path to remote code execution. The attacker executes inside the application runtime, which means database credentials, integration keys, and any secrets the process has loaded in memory are all exposed.

For deployments of Amazon Redshift connector for Python that have been exposed to the public internet during the disclosure window, the operating assumption should be that scanning has already happened. Even where exploitation has not been publicly observed, scanning for the vulnerable fingerprint is cheap and routine. Patching closes the door; log review and credential rotation close out the rest of the response.

Am I affected?

You are affected if your installation matches any of these version ranges:

Amazon Redshift connector for Python: 0 <= 2.1.13

Check your installed version against the list above. If you cannot determine the version, treat the system as affected and follow the upgrade path below.

Open Amazon Redshift connector for Python's About dialog or run the vendor-documented version-check command. Compare the result against the affected ranges in the advisory.

How to fix CVE-2026-8838

Read the vendor advisory in full: https://github.com/aws/amazon-redshift-python-driver/releases/tag/v2.1.14
Upgrade Amazon Redshift connector for Python to the patched build listed in the vendor advisory.
Back up the configuration (and database, where applicable) before upgrading.
Rotate any credentials, API keys, or session tokens that the vulnerable service touched. An unauthenticated RCE-class flaw means anything the process could see should be treated as exposed.
Apply the patch in a maintenance window. For HA pairs, upgrade the standby node first, fail over, then upgrade the former primary.
Restart the affected service so the patched binary loads, then verify the new version (see verification section).

Open-source library upgrade

The vendor advisory (https://github.com/aws/amazon-redshift-python-driver/releases/tag/v2.1.14) names the patched release as the build named in the vendor advisory (https://github.com/aws/amazon-redshift-python-driver/releases/tag/v2.1.14). Pull the

fixed version through whichever ecosystem actually ships amazon-redshift-connector-for-python.


# Vendor advisory: https://github.com/aws/amazon-redshift-python-driver/releases/tag/v2.1.14
# npm / pnpm / yarn
npm install amazon-redshift-connector-for-python@latest
npm ls amazon-redshift-connector-for-python

# Or pin to the patched version named in the advisory
npm install amazon-redshift-connector-for-python@<patched-version>

# pip / Poetry
pip install --upgrade "amazon-redshift-connector-for-python"
pip show amazon-redshift-connector-for-python | grep -i version
poetry add "amazon-redshift-connector-for-python@^<patched-version>"

# Go modules
go get example.com/amazon-redshift-connector-for-python@<patched-version>
go mod tidy

# Rust crates
cargo update -p amazon-redshift-connector-for-python

# Composer
composer require vendor/amazon-redshift-connector-for-python:^<patched-version>


# Vendor advisory: https://github.com/aws/amazon-redshift-python-driver/releases/tag/v2.1.14
# Container image: rebuild against the patched base and roll the deployment.
docker pull <your-registry>/amazon-redshift-connector-for-python:<patched-tag>
docker stop <app> && docker rm <app>
docker run -d --name <app> <your-registry>/amazon-redshift-connector-for-python:<patched-tag>

# Kubernetes
kubectl set image deployment/<deployment-name> <container>=<your-registry>/amazon-redshift-connector-for-python:<patched-tag>
kubectl rollout status deployment/<deployment-name>

Linux package upgrade

The vendor advisory (https://github.com/aws/amazon-redshift-python-driver/releases/tag/v2.1.14) names the patched build as the build named in the vendor advisory (https://github.com/aws/amazon-redshift-python-driver/releases/tag/v2.1.14).


# Ubuntu / Debian
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install --only-upgrade python3
dpkg -s python3 | grep -i version

# RHEL / Rocky / AlmaLinux / Fedora
sudo dnf upgrade --refresh python3 -y
rpm -q python3

# openSUSE
sudo zypper refresh && sudo zypper update python3

# Restart the service that loads the patched binary
sudo systemctl restart python3 2>/dev/null || true
sudo systemctl status python3 --no-pager 2>/dev/null || true


# Vendor advisory: https://github.com/aws/amazon-redshift-python-driver/releases/tag/v2.1.14
# Container deployments: rebuild with the patched package layer, then roll the workload.
docker pull <your-registry>/python3:<patched-tag>
docker stop <app> && docker rm <app>
docker run -d --name <app> <your-registry>/python3:<patched-tag>

# Kubernetes
kubectl set image deployment/<deployment-name> python3=<your-registry>/python3:<patched-tag>
kubectl rollout status deployment/<deployment-name>

Verify the fix landed


# Vendor advisory: https://github.com/aws/amazon-redshift-python-driver/releases/tag/v2.1.14
# 1. Compare the running version against the fixed build named above.
#    (Replace the version probe with the platform-specific command from the block above.)

# 2. Re-scan with your vulnerability scanner (Nessus, Qualys, Tenable, OpenVAS).
#    The scanner should no longer flag this CVE on the patched target.

# 3. Inspect recent service / kernel logs for crash loops or rollback events.
journalctl -u <service> --since "10 minutes ago"
dmesg --since "10 minutes ago"

If you cannot patch immediately

No official workaround exists beyond restricting network exposure to the affected component. Apply the vendor patch as the primary remediation.

How to verify the fix worked

After applying the patch, verify the running version in the product's admin UI or via the vendor-documented CLI command.
Confirm the patched build matches the version listed in the vendor advisory.
Run an authenticated vulnerability scan with a current signature set and confirm the scanner no longer flags CVE-2026-8838.
Review logs for the entire pre-patch window for indicators of compromise listed in the vendor or CISA advisory.
Confirm any network-layer mitigations that were applied as a stopgap have been reverted (or left in place intentionally) once the patch is verified.

If your installation was internet-reachable during the disclosure window, treat log review as part of the remediation rather than an optional follow-up. Look for unexpected administrator accounts in Amazon Redshift connector for Python, scheduled tasks or cron jobs you did not create, new files in web-accessible directories, and outbound connections to addresses not in your baseline. Suspicious requests to the vulnerable endpoint immediately followed by successful 200-class responses with unusually large bodies are a strong indicator of exploitation.

Frequently asked questions

Is CVE-2026-8838 being exploited in the wild?