auto-changelog: code execution via untrusted in-repository configuration (handlebarsSetup/plugins), plus argument injection, path traversal, and SSRF

MITRE NVD CVE.ORG JSON API

Summary

CVECVE-2026-12171
StatePUBLISHED
Assignerharborist
Source PriorityCVE Program / NVD first with legacy fallback
Published2026-10-05 17:17:14 UTC
Updated2026-10-05 20:17:21 UTC
Descriptionauto-changelog before 2.6.1 merges configuration from inside the target repository (the .auto-changelog file and the auto-changelog key in package.json) into its options, and honors security-sensitive options from that untrusted source. The handlebarsSetup option is passed to require(), so running auto-changelog over attacker-controlled repository content (for example, in a CI workflow that checks out an untrusted pull request head, or locally on a forked or third-party repository) executes attacker-chosen code with the privileges of the invoking user or CI job, including access to workflow secrets, without the repository dependencies ever being installed. The plugins option similarly loads attacker-controlled modules from the repository. Under the same conditions, appendGitLog/appendGitTag allow git argument injection (e.g. --output= to write arbitrary files), output allows writing attacker-influenced content to arbitrary paths, and template causes an outbound request to an attacker-chosen URL. Version 2.6.1 treats in-repository configuration as untrusted and refuses to run when it sets these options, unless the new --unsafe-config flag is passed.

Risk And Classification

Primary CVSS: v4.0 8.4 HIGH from 7ffcee3d-2c14-4c3e-b844-86c6a321a158

CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X

Problem Types: CWE-22 | CWE-88 | CWE-94 | CWE-829 | CWE-918 | CWE-829 CWE-829: Inclusion of Functionality from Untrusted Control Sphere | CWE-94 CWE-94: Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection') | CWE-88 CWE-88: Improper Neutralization of Argument Delimiters in a Command ('Argument Injection') | CWE-22 CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') | CWE-918 CWE-918: Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF)

VersionSourceTypeScoreSeverityVector
4.07ffcee3d-2c14-4c3e-b844-86c6a321a158Secondary8.4HIGHCVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/C...
4.0CNACVSS8.4HIGHCVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
3.17ffcee3d-2c14-4c3e-b844-86c6a321a158Secondary7.8HIGHCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
3.1CNACVSS7.8HIGHCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS v4.0 Breakdown

Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Low
Attack Requirements
None
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
Active
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High
Sub Conf.
None
Sub Integrity
None
Sub Availability
None

CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:A/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X

CVSS v3.1 Breakdown

Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

Vendor Declared Affected Products

SourceVendorProductVersionPlatforms
CNA Cookpete Auto-changelog affected 2.6.1 semver Not specified

References

ReferenceSourceLinkTags
github.com/cookpete/auto-changelog/security/advisories/GHSA-xpvr-2hvx-m8q4 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0 github.com
github.com/cookpete/auto-changelog/commit/1d02a48a0a57c69a3cd268aca375d6... 7ffcee3d-2c14-4c3e-b844-86c6a321a158 github.com
CVE Program record CVE.ORG www.cve.org canonical
NVD vulnerability detail NVD nvd.nist.gov canonical, analysis

Vendor Comments And Credit

Discovery Credit

CNA: d00xy-hash (en)

CNA: Jordan Harband (ljharb) (en)

Additional Advisory Data

Solutions

CNA: Upgrade to auto-changelog 2.6.1 or later. Options that load code, inject git arguments, write outside the repository, or fetch URLs must now be passed on the command line; `--unsafe-config` restores the old behavior for fully trusted repositories only.

Workarounds

CNA: Do not run auto-changelog over untrusted repository content, including CI workflows that check out pull request heads from forks.

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