GHSA-72gr-qfp7-vwhw

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    GHSA-72gr-qfp7-vwhw

    Published: 20 Mar 2026Last Modified: 10 Sept 2026

    Summary: h3: Double Decoding in `serveStatic` Bypasses `resolveDotSegments` Path Traversal Protection via `%252e%252e`

    Details: ## Summary The `serveStatic` utility in h3 applies a redundant `decodeURI()` call to the request pathname after `H3Event` has already performed percent-decoding with `%25` preservation. This double decoding converts `%252e%252e` into `%2e%2e`, which bypasses `resolveDotSegments()` (since it checks for literal `.` characters, not percent-encoded equivalents). When the resulting asset ID is resolved by URL-based backends (CDN, S3, object storage), `%2e%2e` is interpreted as `..` per the URL Standard, enabling path traversal to read arbitrary files from the backend. ## Details The vulnerability is a conflict between two decoding stages: **Stage 1 — `H3Event` constructor** (`src/event.ts:65-69`): ```typescript if (url.pathname.includes("%")) { url.pathname = decodeURI( url.pathname.includes("%25") ? url.pathname.replace(/%25/g, "%2525") : url.pathname, ); } ``` This correctly preserves `%25` sequences by escaping them before decoding. A request for `/%252e%252e/etc/passwd` produces `event.url.pathname` = `/%2e%2e/etc/passwd` — the `%25` was preserved so `%252e` became `%2e` (not `.`). **Stage 2 — `serveStatic`** (`src/utils/static.ts:86-88`): ```typescript const originalId = resolveDotSegments( decodeURI(withLeadingSlash(withoutTrailingSlash(event.url.pathname))), ); ``` This applies a **second** `decodeURI()`, which decodes `%2e` → `.`, producing `/../../../etc/passwd`. However, the decoding happens *inside* the `resolveDotSegments()` call argument — `decodeURI` runs first, then `resolveDotSegments` processes the result. Wait — re-examining the flow more carefully: 1. Input pathname after event.ts: `/%2e%2e/%2e%2e/etc/passwd` 2. `decodeURI()` in static.ts converts `%2e` → `.`, producing: `/../../../etc/passwd` 3. `resolveDotSegments("/../../../etc/passwd")` **does** resolve `..` segments, clamping to `/etc/passwd` The actual bypass is subtler. `decodeURI()` does **not** decode `%2e` — it only decodes characters that `encodeURI` would encode. Since `.` is never encoded by `encodeURI`, `%2e` is **not** decoded by `decodeURI()`. So the chain is: 1. Request: `/%252e%252e/%252e%252e/etc/passwd` 2. After event.ts decode: `/%2e%2e/%2e%2e/etc/passwd` 3. `decodeURI()` in static.ts: `/%2e%2e/%2e%2e/etc/passwd` (unchanged — `decodeURI` doesn't decode `%2e`) 4. `resolveDotSegments()` fast-returns at line 56 because `%2e` contains no literal `.` character: ```typescript if (!path.includes(".")) { return path; } ``` 5. Asset ID `/%2e%2e/%2e%2e/etc/passwd` is passed to `getMeta()` and `getContents()` callbacks 6. URL-based backends resolve `%2e%2e` as `..` per RFC 3986 / URL Standard The root cause is `resolveDotSegments()` only checks for literal `.` characters and does not account for percent-encoded dot sequences (`%2e`). The `decodeURI()` in static.ts is redundant (event.ts already decodes) but is not the direct cause — the real gap is that `%2e%2e` survives as a traversal payload through both decoding stages and `resolveDotSegments`. ## PoC **1. Create a minimal h3 server with a URL-based static backend:** ```javascript // server.mjs import { H3, serveStatic } from "h3"; import { serve } from "srvx"; const app = new H3(); app.get("/**", (event) => { return serveStatic(event, { getMeta(id) { console.log("[getMeta] asset ID:", id); // Simulate URL-based backend (CDN/S3) const url = new URL(id, "https://cdn.example.com/static/"); console.log("[getMeta] resolved URL:", url.href); return { type: "text/plain" }; }, getContents(id) { console.log("[getContents] asset ID:", id); const url = new URL(id, "https://cdn.example.com/static/"); console.log("[getContents] resolved URL:", url.href); return `Fetched from: ${url.href}`; }, }); }); serve({ fetch: app.fetch, port: 3000 }); ``` **2. Send the double-encoded traversal request:** ```bash curl -v 'http://localhost:3000/%252e%252e/%252e%252e/etc/passwd' ``` **3. Observe server logs:** ``` [getMeta] asset ID: /%2e%2e/%2e%2e/etc/passwd [getMeta] resolved URL: https://cdn.example.com/etc/passwd [getContents] asset ID: /%2e%2e/%2e%2e/etc/passwd [getContents] resolved URL: https://cdn.example.com/etc/passwd ``` The `%2e%2e` sequences in the asset ID are resolved as `..` by the `URL` constructor, causing the backend URL to traverse from `/static/` to `/etc/passwd`. ## Impact - **Arbitrary file read from backend storage:** An unauthenticated attacker can read files outside the intended static asset directory on any URL-based backend (CDN origins, S3 buckets, object storage, reverse-proxied file servers). - **Sensitive data exposure:** Depending on the backend, this could expose configuration files, credentials, source code, or other tenants' data in shared storage. - **Affected deployments:** Applications using `serveStatic` with callbacks that resolve asset IDs via URL construction (`new URL(id, baseUrl)` or equivalent). This is a common pattern for CDN proxying and cloud object storage backends. Filesystem-based backends using `path.join()` are not affected since `%2e%2e` is not resolved as a traversal sequence by filesystem APIs. ## Recommended Fix The `resolveDotSegments()` function must account for percent-encoded dot sequences. Additionally, the redundant `decodeURI()` in `serveStatic` should be removed since `H3Event` already handles decoding. **Fix 1 — Remove redundant `decodeURI` in `src/utils/static.ts:86-88`:** ```diff const originalId = resolveDotSegments( - decodeURI(withLeadingSlash(withoutTrailingSlash(event.url.pathname))), + withLeadingSlash(withoutTrailingSlash(event.url.pathname)), ); ``` **Fix 2 — Harden `resolveDotSegments` in `src/utils/internal/path.ts:55-73` to handle percent-encoded dots:** ```diff export function resolveDotSegments(path: string): string { - if (!path.includes(".")) { + if (!path.includes(".") && !path.toLowerCase().includes("%2e")) { return path; } // Normalize backslashes to forward slashes to prevent traversal via `\` - const segments = path.replaceAll("\\", "/").split("/"); + const segments = path.replaceAll("\\", "/") + .replaceAll(/%2e/gi, ".") + .split("/"); const resolved: string[] = []; ``` Both fixes should be applied. Fix 1 removes the unnecessary double-decode. Fix 2 provides defense-in-depth by ensuring `resolveDotSegments` cannot be bypassed with percent-encoded dots regardless of the caller.

    Affected packages

    Package

    Name: h3

    Purl: pkg:npm/h3

    Affected ranges

    Type: SEMVER

    Events:

    Introduced- 0
    Fixed -1.15.9

    Affected versions

    Common Vulnerability Scoring System

    Attack Vector
    Network
    Adjacent
    Local
    Physical
    Privileges Required
    None
    Low
    High
    User Interaction
    None
    Required
    Scope
    Unchanged
    Changed
    Confidentiality
    None
    Low
    High
    Integrity
    None
    Low
    High
    Availability
    None
    Low
    High
    GHSA-72gr-qfp7-vwhw | CVE-DB