Summary
All versions of the package check-branches are vulnerable to Command Injection.
check-branches is a command-line tool that is interacted with locally, or via CI, to confirm no conflicts exist in git branches.
However, the library follows these conventions which can be abused:
- It trusts branch names as they are (plain text)
- It spawns git commands by concatenating user input
Since a branch name is potentially a user input - as users can create branches remotely via pull requests, or simply due to privileged access to a repository - it can effectively be abused to run any command.
Impact
Untrusted input is inserted into a command that is later executed by the application, allowing the attacker to alter the intent of that command. Typical impact: arbitrary command execution in the application's environment.
CVE-2025-11148 has a CVSS score of 9.8 (Critical). The vector is network-reachable, no privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. No fixed version is listed yet, so configuration controls and monitoring matter more in the interim.
Affected versions
Security releases
Kodem intelligence
Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.
Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.
Remediation advice
In the interim: Avoid constructing commands from untrusted input. Use parameterized APIs that separate the command from its arguments.
Kodem Kai can prioritize this vulnerability in your dependency tree and generate a fix recommendation.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2025-11148? CVE-2025-11148 is a critical-severity command injection vulnerability in check-branches (npm), affecting versions <= 0.0.19. No fixed version is listed yet. Untrusted input is inserted into a command that is later executed by the application, allowing the attacker to alter the intent of that command.
- How severe is CVE-2025-11148? CVE-2025-11148 has a CVSS score of 9.8 (Critical). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
- Which versions of check-branches are affected by CVE-2025-11148? check-branches (npm) versions <= 0.0.19 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2025-11148? No fixed version is listed for CVE-2025-11148 yet. Monitor the advisory for updates and apply mitigations in the interim.
- Is CVE-2025-11148 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2025-11148 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
- What actually determines whether CVE-2025-11148 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
- How do I fix CVE-2025-11148? No fixed version is listed yet. In the interim: Avoid constructing commands from untrusted input. Use parameterized APIs that separate the command from its arguments.