In Go before 1.10.6 and 1.11.x before 1.11.3, the "go get" command is vulnerable to remote code execution when executed with the -u flag and the import path of a malicious Go package, or a package that imports it directly or indirectly. Specifically, it is only vulnerable in GOPATH mode, but not in module mode (the distinction is documented at https://golang.org/cmd/go/#hdr-Module_aware_go_get). Using custom domains, it's possible to arrange things so that a Git repository is cloned to a folder named ".git" by using a vanity import path that ends with "/.git". If the Git repository root contains a "HEAD" file, a "config" file, an "objects" directory, a "refs" directory, with some work to ensure the proper ordering of operations, "go get -u" can be tricked into considering the parent directory as a repository root, and running Git commands on it. That will use the "config" file in the original Git repository root for its configuration, and if that config file contains malicious commands, they will execute on the system running "go get -u".
CVE-2018-16873
Score 8.1 from GitHub Security Advisory (severity: HIGH) published 2022-05-13. NVD baseline CVSS 8.1; sources differ by 0.0.
- High exploitation likelihood — EPSS 66%
No vendor fix yet — apply a workaround or compensating control (WAF / firewall / segmentation) and watch for a patch.
- CVSS v3
- 8.1
- EG Score
- 8.1(medium)
- EPSS
- 99.2%
- KEV
- Not listed
Published
December 14, 2018
Last Modified
November 21, 2024
References (24)
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2019-03/msg00044.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2019-05/msg00060.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2019-06/msg00011.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2019-06/msg00015.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2019-07/msg00010.html
- secalert@redhathttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-04/msg00041.html
- secalert@redhathttp://www.securityfocus.com/bid/106226
- secalert@redhathttps://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=CVE-2018-16873
- secalert@redhathttps://groups.google.com/forum/?pli=1#%21topic/golang-announce/Kw31K8G7Fi0
- secalert@redhathttps://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2021/03/msg00014.html
- secalert@redhathttps://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2021/03/msg00015.html
- secalert@redhathttps://security.gentoo.org/glsa/201812-09
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2019-03/msg00044.html
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2019-05/msg00060.html
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2019-06/msg00011.html
Affected Packages
(1 across 1 ecosystem)
Go(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| toolchain | — | 1.11.3 | — |
Weakness Classification(1)
MITRE Common Weakness Enumeration — the root-cause categories this CVE belongs to.
Data Freshness Timeline
(refreshed 8× in last 7d / 24× in last 30d)
Each row is a source pipeline that fetched or updated this CVE on that date, with what changed. For example, "NVD update" means NVD published or revised its analysis for this CVE; "MITRE cvelistV5" means we ingested or refreshed it from the CNA feed. Most recent first.
- 2026-07-22 22:14 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-22 14:04 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-07-21 01:17 UTCOSV refresh
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- 2026-07-03 20:56 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-07-02 16:54 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-06-15 17:45 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-15 08:43 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-06-14 23:14 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-06-12 23:09 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-05-29 13:41 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-28 13:42 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-28 13:42 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-28 00:17 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-05-28 00:17 UTCGHSA enrichment
- 2026-05-27 13:38 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-05-26 07:17 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-26 07:17 UTCEPSS rescore
Related CVEs(same CWE)
Frequently asked(5)
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