CVE-2025-66401: Mcp watch Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-27m7-ffhq-jqrm",
  "modified" : "2025-12-02T00:38:14Z",
  "published" : "2025-12-02T00:38:14Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2025-66401" ],
  "summary" : "MCP Watch has a Critical Command Injection in cloneRepo allows Remote Code Execution (RCE) via malicious URL",
  "details" : "### Summary\nThe `MCPScanner ` class contains a critical Command Injection vulnerability in the `cloneRepo `method. The application passes the user-supplied githubUrl argument directly to a system shell via execSync without sanitization. This allows an attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the host machine by appending shell metacharacters to the URL.\n\n### Details\nThe vulnerability exists in the src/scanner/MCPScanner.ts file within the cloneRepo method.\n\n[https://github.com/kapilduraphe/mcp-watch/blob/0fca7228bd313ae5aa938d61311377e88ce6e682/src/scanner/McpScanner.ts#L181](https://github.com/kapilduraphe/mcp-watch/blob/0fca7228bd313ae5aa938d61311377e88ce6e682/src/scanner/McpScanner.ts#L181)\n\nThe code uses child_process.execSync to execute a git clone command:\n\nBecause execSync spawns a shell (defaulting to `/bin/sh` on Unix or` cmd.exe` on Windows), any shell metacharacters present in the url argument will be interpreted by the shell. The application does not validate that the url is a valid Git URL, nor does it sanitize input for shell metacharacters.\n\n### PoC\nInstall the package or clone the repository.\n\nRun the scanner using the CLI (or invoke scanRepository programmatically).\n\nProvide a malicious URL containing a command separator (e.g., ;, &, or |) and a system command.\npayload : `npm run scan:github \"https://github.com/kapilduraphe/mcp-watch & calc.exe\"`\n\n<img width=\"1918\" height=\"1046\" alt=\"image\" src=\"https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/021c1dfa-3f87-483c-aecb-6939bcf9c925\" />\n\n\n\n### Impact\nSeverity: **Critical**\n\n**CVSS Score**: 9.8 (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H)\nDescription: This vulnerability allows an attacker to execute arbitrary code on the machine running the scanner.\n\nIf run by a developer locally, it compromises their workstation.\n\nIf deployed as a hosted scanning service, it grants the attacker full control over the server (RCE), leading to potential data exfiltration, service disruption, or further lateral movement within the infrastructure.\n\n**Context Dependent Risk:**\n\nLocal CLI : If you run this tool locally on your own machine, you are \"hacking yourself.\" The risk is limited unless you copy-paste a malicious URL sent by someone else (e.g., \"Hey, check this repo scan: npm run scan \"https://git./..; rm -rf /\").\n\n**Web Service / CI Pipeline (Critical Risk)**: If this scanner is deployed as a web service (e.g., \"Paste your repo URL to scan\"), an attacker can take full control of the server immediately.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "mcp-watch"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "last_affected" : "0.1.2"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/kapilduraphe/mcp-watch/security/advisories/GHSA-27m7-ffhq-jqrm"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-66401"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/kapilduraphe/mcp-watch/commit/e7da78c5b4b960f8b66c254059ad9ebc544a91a6"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/kapilduraphe/mcp-watch"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-78" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2025-12-02T00:38:14Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2025-12-01T23:15:53Z"
  }
}