GHSA-f7wf-v2vw-mpcx
mcp-memory-keeper: Arbitrary local file read in context_import via unvalidated filePath
Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| npm | mcp-memory-keeper | < 0.13.0 | 0.13.0 |
Details
As written in the advisory (Markdown source, shown as plain text).
### Impact
`context_import` passed the caller-supplied `filePath` directly to `fs.readFileSync` with no path confinement. A malicious MCP client — or an LLM agent that is prompt-injected into calling the tool — could point `filePath` at **any file readable by the server process**, outside any session or export directory:
- **Full disclosure (JSON files):** a valid-JSON target (e.g. another user's exported session, or a `*.json` credential / service-account file) is parsed and imported into the caller's session, then retrievable verbatim via `context_get` / `context_export`.
- **Partial disclosure (any file):** for a non-JSON target (e.g. `/etc/passwd`, an SSH key, a `.env`), `JSON.parse` throws and V8 includes a snippet of the file's leading bytes in the `SyntaxError` message, which was returned verbatim to the caller.
Both `../` traversal and absolute paths worked — there was no path confinement of any kind.
In a typical MCP deployment the server runs on the developer's machine, so the reachable set includes other users' exported memory sessions, JSON credential/config files, and (in leading-bytes form) `.env` files, SSH keys, and `/etc/passwd`. The trigger is a tool argument, so the realistic threat model is an LLM agent prompt-injected into calling `context_import`, or any MCP client connected to the server.
### Patches
Fixed in **0.13.0** (PR #36):
- Imports are confined to a server-owned exports directory (`<DATA_DIR>/exports`, overridable via `MEMORY_KEEPER_EXPORT_DIR`), resolved with `realpathSync`. `../` traversal, absolute paths outside the directory, and symlink escapes are all rejected.
- File read and `JSON.parse` are separate operations; read/parse failures return a generic message and never echo file bytes (the `SyntaxError`-message leak is gone). The database-write path is likewise generic.
- An E2E security regression suite covers the reported arbitrary-read and traversal vectors, plus symlink escape, the directory-prefix boundary, and a no-existence-oracle check.
### Workarounds
Upgrade to **`>= 0.13.0`**. There is no configuration-only workaround for affected versions.
### Resources
- Report: GitHub issue #35
- Fix: PR #36
### Credit
Reported by Zhihao Zhang ([@mcfly-zzh](https://github.com/mcfly-zzh)).
References
External links from the advisory. They lead to third-party sites.
- https://github.com/mkreyman/mcp-memory-keeper/security/advisories/GHSA-f7wf-v2vw-mpcx
- https://github.com/mkreyman/mcp-memory-keeper/issues/35
- https://github.com/mkreyman/mcp-memory-keeper/pull/36
- https://github.com/mkreyman/mcp-memory-keeper/commit/84f6dfa692736a34ff36e2d2cf2188b71facf73b
- https://github.com/mkreyman/mcp-memory-keeper
- https://github.com/mkreyman/mcp-memory-keeper/releases/tag/v0.13.0