Summary
Workarounds
If patching or upgrading is not possible, it would be sufficient to update any custom Catalog field format validators and/or custom entity policies to disallow entity names, kinds, and namespaces containing ..
For more information
If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:
- Open an issue in the Backstage repository
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Impact
A malicious actor with the ability to register entities in the Software Catalog is able to write files to arbitrary paths on the techdocs backend host instance when techdocs.publisher.type is set to local.
This vulnerability is mitigated by the fact that the Software Catalog must be configured with non-standard field format validators and/or non-standard entity policies.
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
Those affected are advised to upgrade to @backstage/plugin-techdocs-node version 1.1.2 or higher.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is GHSA-4JQC-JVH2-PXG9? GHSA-4JQC-JVH2-PXG9 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in @backstage/plugin-techdocs-node (npm), affecting versions < 1.1.2. It is fixed in 1.1.2, 0.11.16.
- Which packages are affected by GHSA-4JQC-JVH2-PXG9?
@backstage/plugin-techdocs-node(npm) (versions < 1.1.2)@backstage/techdocs-common(npm) (versions < 0.11.16)
- Is there a fix for GHSA-4JQC-JVH2-PXG9? Yes. GHSA-4JQC-JVH2-PXG9 is fixed in 1.1.2, 0.11.16. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is GHSA-4JQC-JVH2-PXG9 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether GHSA-4JQC-JVH2-PXG9 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 GHSA-4JQC-JVH2-PXG9 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 GHSA-4JQC-JVH2-PXG9?
- Upgrade
@backstage/plugin-techdocs-nodeto 1.1.2 or later - Upgrade
@backstage/techdocs-commonto 0.11.16 or later
- Upgrade