GHSA-m9mq-7m7q-xc6p
browse-mcp has an arbitrary file write via unconfined download and state paths
Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| npm | browse-mcp | < 0.8.2 | 0.8.2 |
Details
As written in the advisory (Markdown source, shown as plain text).
### Impact
`browser_download` wrote a fetched file to `join(save_dir, filename)` with no validation of `save_dir`, and `browser_save_state` / `browser_load_state` honored an explicit `path` unchanged. The MCP caller controls these arguments (a malicious MCP client, or an autonomous agent steered by indirect prompt injection on a visited page), so an attacker could supply an arbitrary `save_dir` (or state `path`) together with a URL whose response body became the file contents, writing attacker-controlled bytes to any path the process can reach (for example `~/.bashrc`, an autostart entry, or a cron file). That is an arbitrary file write that can lead to host code execution. The `force_fetch` fallback additionally used a raw `fetch()` that bypassed the `BROWSE_MCP_ALLOWED_ORIGINS` origin fence.
Estimated severity: CVSS 3.1 around 7.8 (High) for the local / agent-mediated case.
### Patches
Fixed in 0.8.2. `save_dir` is confined under the download root (`~/.browse-mcp/downloads`) and the explicit state `path` under `~/.browse-mcp/state`; absolute paths and `..` escapes are rejected, and download filenames are reduced to a bare basename. `force_fetch` now also honors the origin fence. Data roots remain relocatable via `BROWSE_MCP_HOME`. Upgrade to browse-mcp 0.8.2.
### Workarounds
Restrict the exposed tools with `BROWSE_MCP_TOOLS` to a set that excludes `browser_download`, `browser_save_state`, and `browser_load_state` (for example the hardened recipe in SECURITY.md). Note that the allowlist hides the tools from an agent but does not stop a malicious MCP client from calling them by name, so upgrading is the real fix.
- Reported privately by novice-22.
References
External links from the advisory. They lead to third-party sites.
- https://github.com/That1Drifter/browse-mcp/security/advisories/GHSA-m9mq-7m7q-xc6p
- https://github.com/That1Drifter/browse-mcp/pull/58
- https://github.com/That1Drifter/browse-mcp/commit/5352a4a56f626254b445bfa07e4bb48c5aad15c1
- https://github.com/That1Drifter/browse-mcp
- https://github.com/That1Drifter/browse-mcp/blob/v0.8.2/CHANGELOG.md#082---2026-06-13
- https://github.com/That1Drifter/browse-mcp/releases/tag/v0.8.2