CVE-2026-64653 GitHub CLI: Unescaped variable components in request URLs could allow path traversal
Attacker-controlled repository values in GitHub CLI requests can bypass intended API endpoints due to missing URL encoding, potentially exposing or modifying unintended resources.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Not needed
- Attackable
- Over the internet
- Victim action needed
- A user has to click or open something
- Fix
- Available
What is CVE-2026-64653?
CVE-2026-64653 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in cli, published on 6 Aug 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Official description
GitHub CLI (gh) is GitHub’s official command line tool. Prior to 2.97.0, some HTTP request URLs interpolate variable path components without percent encoding, allowing URL path metacharacters in attacker-controlled repository or resource values to make gh address a different API endpoint or resource than the user intended. This issue is fixed in version 2.97.0.
Weakness: CWE-22
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-64653?
4 open source packages ship an affected version, including github.com/cli/cli/v2 and github.com/cli/cli.
| Package | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
github.com/cli/cli/v2 Go | All versions | 2.97.0 |
github.com/cli/cli/v2 Go | All versions | 2.97.0 |
github.com/cli/cli/v2 Go | All versions | 2.97.0 |
github.com/cli/cli Go | All versions | None |
How do I fix CVE-2026-64653?
Upgrade github.com/cli/cli/v2 to 2.97.0 or later.
Upgrade, and resolve every user-supplied path against an allowed base folder before opening it. More about Path traversal.
Is CVE-2026-64653 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-64653 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Sources
Also known as AZL-95465, DEBIAN-CVE-2026-64653, GHSA-4fjg-2h4q-fwg3, GO-2026-6765, MINI-5v75-qcw6-7c88, MINI-h658-5r7w-9jg2 and 1 more.