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Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')

CVE-2017-17458

High
9.8/10

Summary

In Mercurial before 4.4.1, it is possible that a specially malformed repository can cause Git subrepositories to run arbitrary code in the form of a .git/hooks/post-update script checked into the repository. Typical use of Mercurial prevents construction of such repositories, but they can be created programmatically.

  • LOW
  • NETWORK
  • HIGH
  • UNCHANGED
  • NONE
  • NONE
  • HIGH
  • HIGH

CWE-78 - OS Command Injection

The OS command injection weakness (also known as shell injection) is a vulnerability which enables an attacker to run arbitrary OS commands on a server. This is done by modifying the intended downstream OS command and injecting arbitrary commands, enabling the execution of unauthorized OS commands. This has the potential to fully compromise the application along with all of its data, and, if the compromised process does not follow the principle of least privileges, it may compromise other parts of the hosting infrastructure as well. This weakness is listed as number ten in the 'CWE Top 25 Most Dangerous Software Weaknesses'.

References

Advisory Timeline

  • Published