CVE-2026-61835: Directus SSRF Protection Bypass Vulnerability

{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-j5h6-vqc3-phqh",
  "modified" : "2026-07-20T21:47:17Z",
  "published" : "2026-07-20T21:47:17Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-61835" ],
  "summary" : "Directus: SSRF Protection Bypass via 0.0.0.0 in File Import",
  "details" : "### Summary\n\nThe SSRF protection on Directus's file-import-from-URL feature can be bypassed using the address `0.0.0.0`. While `127.0.0.1` and other internal addresses are denied, `0.0.0.0` is not added to the blocklist. On Linux and macOS, connecting to `0.0.0.0` reaches localhost, so an authenticated user with file-upload rights can make the server fetch internal services and retrieve the response as a downloadable file (full-read SSRF).\n\n### Affected Versions\n\n- **Affected:** Directus `<= 12.0.0` (confirmed on `directus/directus:latest`, v11.17.3, with default configuration)\n- **Patched:** Directus `>= 12.0.0`\n\n### Details\n\nDirectus uses a deny-list config, `IMPORT_IP_DENY_LIST`, whose default value is `['0.0.0.0', '169.254.169.254']`.\n\nThe issue is in how `api/src/request/is-denied-ip.ts` processes this list. When it encounters the entry `0.0.0.0`, it treats it as a special keyword meaning \"block all local network interfaces,\" but it never blocks the literal address `0.0.0.0` itself. The handler sets the network-interface flag and skips to the next entry without adding `0.0.0.0` to the blocklist.\n\nWhat actually gets blocked is the loopback subnet `127.0.0.0/8` (from the `lo` interface) plus whatever addresses are assigned to the machine's network interfaces. The address `0.0.0.0` is not inside `127.0.0.0/8`; it belongs to the separate `0.0.0.0/8` range. So a request to `http://0.0.0.0:8055/` passes the blocklist check as \"allowed.\"\n\nAt the OS level, however, connecting to `0.0.0.0` reaches localhost, functionally equivalent to `127.0.0.1`. The same gap applies to the IPv6 unspecified address `::`. As a result, the SSRF protection is bypassed.\n\n### Impact\n\nAn authenticated user with create permission on `directus_files` (file-upload rights) can make the server issue requests to its own localhost via the `/files/import` endpoint. The response body is stored as a downloadable file, making this a full-read SSRF. On bare-metal or single-host deployments, this can reach databases, caches, and internal APIs bound to localhost. This bypass defeats the protections tracked as CVE-2026-35409 and CVE-2024-46990.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "directus"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "12.0.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/directus/directus/security/advisories/GHSA-j5h6-vqc3-phqh"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-61835"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/directus/directus/pull/27606"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/directus/directus/commit/f75b25fa44b05c6022b20f231c20bc6e50f021d7"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/directus/directus"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/directus/directus/releases/tag/v12.0.0"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-918" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-07-20T21:47:17Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-07-15T15:16:48Z"
  }
}