GHSA-268j-37xf-pp52: Gogs's write-level collaborators can mutate admin-only repository settings via API
Summary
Three API endpoints — PATCH /api/v1/repos/:owner/:repo/issue-tracker, PATCH /api/v1/repos/:owner/:repo/wiki, and POST /api/v1/repos/:owner/:repo/mirror-sync — are gated by reqRepoWriter() rather than reqRepoAdmin(). The equivalent operations in the web UI sit behind reqRepoAdmin, which requires AccessMode >= AccessModeAdmin. A write-level collaborator (who has AccessMode == AccessModeWrite < AccessModeAdmin) can therefore call these API endpoints directly to disable the native issue tracker or wiki, inject attacker-controlled external tracker/wiki URLs that redirect all repository visitors, or trigger mirror sync — none of which they are authorized to do.
Severity
High (CVSS 3.1: 7.1)
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:L
- Attack Vector: Network — the API endpoints are reachable over HTTP/S.
- Attack Complexity: Low — a single API call is sufficient; no chaining or race condition required.
- Privileges Required: Low — only write-level collaborator access to the targeted repository is needed. The attacker does not need repo-admin or site-admin privileges.
- User Interaction: None — the attacker acts unilaterally.
- Scope: Unchanged — the impact is contained to the targeted repository's settings and its visitors.
- Confidentiality Impact: None — the attacker does not read confidential data directly.
- Integrity Impact: High — the attacker permanently mutates repository configuration, including injecting an external URL that redirects all visitors who click the Issues or Wiki tabs to an attacker-controlled site.
- Availability Impact: Low — disabling the native issue tracker or wiki reduces the availability of those features for all repository participants.
Affected component
- internal/route/api/v1/api.go — route registration (lines 365–367)
- internal/route/api/v1/repo_repo.go — issueTracker() (line 400), wiki() (line 437), mirrorSync() (line 463)
CWE
- CWE-863: Incorrect Authorization
- CWE-269: Improper Privilege Management
Description
Th
Details
Original advisory: https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-268j-37xf-pp52
Exploitation outlook
EPSS (FIRST.org) estimates each CVE’s probability of exploitation in the next 30 days — here is the CSIRTS.com read on those numbers.
- Low exploitation riskCVE-2026-528080.34% 30-day exploitation probability — currently an unlikely target, but scores change as exploit code circulates. Riskier than 26% of all scored CVEs.
Referenced CVEs
| CVE | CSIRTS overview | External |
|---|---|---|
| CVE-2026-52808 | coverage & exploitation status | NVD · CVE.org |
More from GitHub Security Advisories
- mediumGHSA-xm43-3m56-w3wf: Ghost: Paid gift memberships obtainable at minimal cost via the donations feature2026-08-04
- mediumGHSA-chgm-3698-jm42: Ghost: Member existence leak via magic link sign-in response2026-08-04
- highGHSA-xpp7-93x6-v29m: XSS in Ghost's ActivityPub client2026-08-04
- mediumGHSA-7mpp-r37j-x5wh: Ghost: Session Fixation in Ghost Admin2026-08-04
- mediumGHSA-cjc9-q5gf-327p: Ghost: Theme Upload Path Traversal2026-08-04