GHSA-rjr7-jggh-pgcp

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    GHSA-rjr7-jggh-pgcp

    Published: 25 Jun 2026Last Modified: 10 Sept 2026

    Summary: chi's RealIP Middleware allows IP spoofing via unvalidated X-Forwarded-For header

    Details: ### Summary realip middleware in go-chi/chi trusts headers like x-forwarded-for without checking them, so attackers can fake their ip and bypass rate limits or access controls ### Details the vuln is in middleware/realip.go , the realIP() function pulls IPs straight from client headers and replaces r.RemoteAddr without checking if the request came from a trusted proxy ```go func realIP(r *http.Request) string { var ip string if tcip := r.Header.Get(trueClientIP); tcip != "" { ip = tcip // controlled by attacker } else if xrip := r.Header.Get(xRealIP); xrip != "" { ip = xrip // controlled by attacker } else if xff := r.Header.Get(xForwardedFor); xff != "" { ip, _, _ = strings.Cut(xff, ",") // controlled by attacker } // ... return ip } ``` no trusted proxy cidr check in place, any client can send these headers ### PoC create a server with chi and use realip middleware ```go package main import ( "fmt" "net/http" "github.com/go-chi/chi/v5" "github.com/go-chi/chi/v5/middleware" ) func main() { r := chi.NewRouter() r.Use(middleware.RealIP) r.Get("/admin", func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) { // ip-based access control got bypassed if r.RemoteAddr == "127.0.0.1" { w.Write([]byte("SECRET ADMIN DATA")) return } http.Error(w, "Forbidden", 403) }) http.ListenAndServe(":8080", r) } ``` spoofed the ip to bypass access control ```bash curl -H "X-Forwarded-For: 127.0.0.1" http://localhost:8080/admin ``` ### Impact - ip-based access control bypass lets attackers reach restricted endpoints - rate limiting bypass lets attackers avoid limits by rotating spoofed ips - audit logs show fake ips picked by attacker instead of real ones - attackers can get around geo ip restrictions ## Remediation Recommendation validate proxy cidr first before trusting forwarded ip headers ```go // add your reverse proxy ip addresses here var trustedProxies = []net.IPNet{ {IP: net.ParseIP("10.0.0.0"), Mask: net.CIDRMask(8, 32)}, {IP: net.ParseIP("172.16.0.0"), Mask: net.CIDRMask(12, 32)}, {IP: net.ParseIP("192.168.0.0"), Mask: net.CIDRMask(16, 32)}, } func isTrustedProxy(ip net.IP) bool { for _, cidr := range trustedProxies { if cidr.Contains(ip) { return true } } return false } ```

    Affected packages

    Package

    Name: github.com/go-chi/chi/middleware

    Purl: pkg:golang/github.com/go-chi/chi/middleware

    Affected ranges

    Type: SEMVER

    Events:

    Introduced- 0
    Fixed -None

    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