File Browser: Proxy auth auto-provisioned users inherit Execute permission and Commands

Description

Summary

The fix in commit b6a4fb1 ("self-registered users don't get execute perms") stripped Execute permission and Commands from users created via the signup handler. The same fix was not applied to the proxy auth handler. Users auto-created on first successful proxy-auth login are granted execution capabilities from global defaults, even though the signup path was explicitly changed to prevent execution rights from being inherited by automatically provisioned accounts.

Confirmed on v2.62.2 (commit 860c19d).

Root Cause

auth/proxy.go createUser() applies defaults without restriction:

user := &users.User{
    Username:     username,
    Password:     hashedRandomPassword,
    LockPassword: true,
}
setting.Defaults.Apply(user)
// No restriction on Execute, Commands, or Admin

Compare with http/auth.go signup handler (lines 170-178):

d.settings.Defaults.Apply(user)
user.Perm.Admin = false
// Self-registered users should not inherit execution capabilities
// from default settings, regardless of what the administrator has
// configured as the default.
user.Perm.Execute = false
user.Commands = []string{}

The commit message for b6a4fb1 states: "Execution rights must be explicitly granted by an admin." Users auto-created via proxy auth are also automatically provisioned (created on first login without explicit admin action), and the admin has not explicitly granted them execution rights.

PoC

Tested on filebrowser v2.62.2, built from HEAD.

# Configure with proxy auth, default commands, and exec
filebrowser config set --auth.method=proxy --auth.header=X-Remote-User \
  --commands "git,ls,cat,id"

# Login as admin and verify defaults have execute=true, commands set
ADMIN_TOKEN=$(curl -s http://HOST/api/login -H "X-Remote-User: admin")

# Auto-create new user via proxy header
PROXY_TOKEN=$(curl -s http://HOST/api/login -H "X-Remote-User: newproxyuser")

# Check permissions
curl -s http://HOST/api/users -H "X-Auth: $ADMIN_TOKEN" | jq '.[] | select(.username=="newproxyuser") | {execute: .perm.execute, commands}'

Result:

{
  "execute": true,
  "commands": ["git", "ls", "cat", "id"]
}

The auto-created proxy user inherited Execute and the full Commands list. A user created via signup would have execute: false and commands: [].

Impact

In proxy-auth deployments where the admin has configured default commands, users auto-provisioned on first proxy login receive execution capabilities that were not explicitly granted. The project established a security invariant in commit b6a4fb1: automatically provisioned accounts must not inherit execution rights from defaults. The proxy auto-provisioning path violates that invariant.

This is an incomplete fix for GHSA-x8jc-jvqm-pm3f ("Signup Grants Execution Permissions When Default Permissions Includes Execution"), which addressed the signup handler but not the proxy auth handler.

Preconditions

  • Proxy auth enabled (--auth.method=proxy)
  • Exec not disabled
  • Default settings include non-empty Commands (admin-configured)

Suggested Fix

Apply the same restrictions as the signup handler:

setting.Defaults.Apply(user)
user.Perm.Admin = false
user.Perm.Execute = false
user.Commands = []string{}

Update: Fix submitted as PR #5890.

Basic information

Type
reviewed
Severity
high
Advisory on GitHub
Open advisory ↗
Repository advisory
Open repository advisory ↗
Source code
Browse source ↗
Published (advisory)
2026-04-08 00:05:12 UTC
Updated
2026-04-08 00:05:13 UTC
GitHub reviewed
2026-04-08 00:05:12 UTC
NVD published
2026-04-07

EPSS Score

Score Percentile
0.08% 23.19%

CVSS Scores

Base score Version Severity Vector
8.1 3.1
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.

Identifiers

CWEs

CWE id Name
CWE-269 Improper Privilege Management

Credits

  • kodareef5 (reporter)

Affected packages (1)

Vulnerable version ranges and first patched releases as published by GitHub.

Ecosystem Package Vulnerable range First patched Vulnerable functions
go github.com/filebrowser/filebrowser/v2 < 2.63.1 2.63.1

References

cvelogic Threat Intelligence