GHSA-xwq5-6cqp-vx96
Echo has a Static Middleware Double-Unescape Path Traversal
Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Go | github.com/labstack/echo/v5 | < 5.2.0 | 5.2.0 |
| Go | github.com/labstack/echo/v4 | < 4.15.3 | 4.15.3 |
Details
As written in the advisory (Markdown source, shown as plain text).
## Summary
Commit a9ede66a (PR #3006, issue #2599) silently fixed a path traversal vulnerability in the Echo web framework's static file middleware.
## Vulnerability
The static middleware double-unescaped URL paths. Go's net/http already decodes Request.URL.Path, but middleware/static.go unconditionally called url.PathUnescape() again:
```go
// BEFORE (vulnerable)
pathUnescape := true
```
This reassembled path traversal sequences from double-encoded input. An attacker could send GET /%2e%2e%2fsecret.txt or /..%252fsecret.txt and the double-unescape would produce ../secret.txt.
## Fix
```go
// AFTER (fixed)
pathUnescape := false
```
The commit's test TestStatic_percentEncodedTraversalIsBlocked explicitly verifies traversal vectors are blocked.
## Impact
Arbitrary file read from server filesystem via percent-encoded path traversal.
## References
- Fix: https://github.com/labstack/echo/commit/a9ede66a
- Issue: https://github.com/labstack/echo/issues/2599
- PR: https://github.com/labstack/echo/pull/3006
## Patches
Fixed in `github.com/labstack/echo/v5` v5.2.0 and `github.com/labstack/echo/v4` v4.15.3, where the Static middleware stopped unescaping an already decoded path. Maintainer analysis: reading files outside the configured root could not be reproduced; the confirmed impact was that a double-encoded slash (`%252F`) could reach a file under a guarded route when the Static middleware is registered globally. Upgrade to v5.4.0 / v4.16.0 or later, which also includes related fixes for encoded and dot-segment paths.
## Workarounds
Keep files that need protection outside the Static middleware's root directory.
References
External links from the advisory. They lead to third-party sites.
- https://github.com/labstack/echo/security/advisories/GHSA-xwq5-6cqp-vx96
- https://github.com/labstack/echo/issues/2599
- https://github.com/labstack/echo/pull/3006
- https://github.com/labstack/echo/commit/a9ede66a5a7196411131beb1ee801e75bbaf7ac6
- https://github.com/labstack/echo/commit/c3fa2a27ff92b2b8db360de614f999ef1da24725
- https://github.com/labstack/echo
- https://github.com/labstack/echo/releases/tag/v4.15.3
- https://github.com/labstack/echo/releases/tag/v5.2.0