Description

In JetBrains IntelliJ IDEA before 2026.3, 2026.2.4, 2026.1.5.1, 2025.3.6.2 code execution was possible in untrusted projects via script engine discovery

Executive Summary

Technical Details

Mitigations

References

Additional Metadata

{
  "score": "7.8",
  "pubDate": "2026-11-06T11:17:09.200Z",
  "pubdate": "2026-11-06T11:17:09.200Z",
  "executiveSummary": "A critical security vulnerability exists in JetBrains IntelliJ IDEA that allows for arbitrary code execution within the context of untrusted projects.\nThe vulnerability stems from flaws in the script engine discovery mechanism, which an attacker can leverage to execute malicious code automatically when a user opens a specially crafted project.\nThis vulnerability affects multiple versions of IntelliJ IDEA, specifically those preceding 2026.3, 2026.2.4, 2026.1.5.1, and 2025.3.6.2.\nSuccessful exploitation allows an unauthenticated, local attacker to achieve code execution with the permissions of the user running the IDE.\nThe risk is high, as the vulnerability primarily targets developers who may inadvertently load malicious project configurations, potentially leading to unauthorized system access, data theft, or further lateral movement within a development environment.",
  "technicalDetails": "The vulnerability resides within the script engine discovery subsystem of IntelliJ IDEA, which is responsible for detecting and initializing scripting environments needed to parse project-specific configurations or automated tasks.\nThe root cause of this vulnerability is an insecure implementation of the script engine loading process. The IDE mechanism fails to adequately validate or sandbox the discovery and subsequent instantiation of script engines when processing project files.\nAn attacker can exploit this by crafting an 'untrusted project'—a directory containing project configuration files that explicitly trigger the loading of malicious script engine components.\nThe attack flow proceeds as follows: First, the attacker distributes a malicious project directory (e.g., via a repository clone or ZIP file). Second, the user opens this directory in a vulnerable version of IntelliJ IDEA. Third, the IDE initiates its project discovery phase, during which it scans for and attempts to initialize necessary script engines based on the project configuration. Fourth, the malicious configuration exploits the discovery mechanism to force the IDE to instantiate and execute attacker-supplied scripts.\nBecause these scripts execute within the IDE's process space, they inherit the full privileges of the user running the application. This allows the payload to perform arbitrary actions, such as reading sensitive files, modifying project source code, executing system commands, or establishing persistence.\nThis vulnerability does not require authentication to the IDE itself, as the exploit is triggered by the act of opening a project file. The attack is effective even if the IDE has not been configured to trust the project, as the discovery and initialization logic occurs before or during the 'Trust Project' prompt, or is mismanaged within the project loading lifecycle.\nAffected versions include all instances of IntelliJ IDEA prior to 2026.3, 2026.2.4, 2026.1.5.1, and 2025.3.6.2. The vulnerability reflects a systemic failure to enforce environment isolation during the early stages of project import, creating a significant security boundary bypass that enables remote-to-local code execution scenarios."
}