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The CVE-2025-????? vulnerability in the check-branches package stems from its insecure handling of user-supplied git branch names. The tool is designed to check for conflicts between git branches. Internally, it constructs and executes shell commands by incorporating branch names directly without proper sanitization. Since branch names can be controlled by a user—for instance, through a pull request or direct repository access—an attacker can craft a malicious branch name containing shell metacharacters. For example, a branch named `feature; rm -rf /` would be unsafely concatenated into a command string. When this string is executed by the shell, the semicolon terminates the intended command and begins a new one, allowing the attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the system with the privileges of the process running check-branches. This lack of input validation and the use of dangerous functions that invoke the system shell are the core technical failures.
Platform: npm
Version: All
Vulnerability: Command Injection
Severity: Critical
date: 2025-09-30
Prediction: Patch by 2025-10-07
What Undercode Say:
`execSync(‘git diff –name-only origin/’ + userBranch);`
`branchName = userInput; // Unsanitized`
`require(‘child_process’).exec(‘check-branches ‘ + branchName);`
How Exploit:
`git checkout -b “malicious; cat /etc/passwd”`
`./check-branches “malicious; cat /etc/passwd”`
Protection from this CVE
Sanitize all user inputs used in commands. Use child_process.execFile or spawn with separate arguments instead of exec. Implement strict allow-lists for branch name characters.
Impact:
Arbitrary command execution, complete system compromise, data loss.
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Sources:
Reported By: github.com
Extra Source Hub:
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