A new critical security vulnerability has been disclosed in n8n, an open-source workflow automation platform, that could enable an authenticated attacker to execute arbitrary system commands on the underlying host.
The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2025-68668, is rated 9.9 on the CVSS scoring system. It has been described as a case of a protection mechanism failure. Cyera Research Labs' Vladimir Tokarev and Ofek Itach have been credited with discovering and reporting the flaw, which has been codenamed N8scape.
It affects n8n versions from 1.0.0 up to, but not including, 2.0.0, and allows an authenticated user with permission to create or modify workflows to execute arbitrary operating system commands on the host running n8n. The issue has been addressed in version 2.0.0.
"A sandbox bypass vulnerability exists in the Python Code Node that uses Pyodide," an advisory for the flaw states. "An authenticated user with permission to create or modify workflows can exploit this vulnerability to execute arbitrary commands on the host system running n8n, using the same privileges as the n8n process."
N8n said it had introduced task runner-based native Python implementation in version 1.111.0 as an optional feature for improved security isolation. The feature can be enabled by configuring the N8N_RUNNERS_ENABLED and N8N_NATIVE_PYTHON_RUNNER environment variables. With the release of version 2.0.0, the implementation has been made the default.
As workarounds, n8n is recommending that users follow the outlined steps below -
- Disable the Code Node by setting the environment variable NODES_EXCLUDE: "[\"n8n-nodes-base.code\"]"
- Disable Python support in the Code node by setting the environment variable N8N_PYTHON_ENABLED=false
- Configure n8n to use the task runner-based Python sandbox via the N8N_RUNNERS_ENABLED and N8N_NATIVE_PYTHON_RUNNER environment variables
The disclosure comes as n8n addressed another critical vulnerability (CVE-2025-68613, CVSS score: 9.9) that could result in arbitrary code execution under certain circumstances.
Update
In a follow-up report published on January 13, 2026, Cyera said the vulnerability makes it possible to escape the Pyodide "sandbox" using "_pyodide._base.eval_code()," collapsing the trust boundary and resulting in code execution with the n8n process privileges in the environment where the service is running.
"It's a structural problem which stems from a blocklist-based sandbox that implicitly assumes the defender can enumerate every dangerous capability and every path to reach it," Tokarev and Itach said. "CVE-2025-68668 is a weakness in the security model of n8n's Pyodide-backed Python execution: n8n blocks a small set of risky functions, but it does not remove the underlying capabilities."
(The story was updated after publication on January 14, 2026, with additional technical details of CVE-2025-68668.)
