melange's world-writable permissions expose SBOM files to potential image tampering

Exploitation

No confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next marks exploitation only from CISA KEV.

CVSS

4.4 · CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:L

EPSS

• CVE-2025-54059: 0.15% estimated exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 4.46 (FIRST EPSS, 2026-11-03). This is a model estimate, not proof of exploitation or customer exposure.

As published by the source; long descriptions are shortened.

It was discovered that the SBOM files generated by melange in apks had file system permissions mode 666: This issue was introduced in commit 1b272db ("Persist workspace filesystem throughout package builds (#1836)") (v0.23.0). Impact This potentially allows an unprivileged user to tamper with apk SBOMs on a running image, potentially confusing security scanners. An attacker could also perform a DoS under special circumstances. Patches This issue was addressed in melange in e29494b ("fix: tighten up permissions for written SBOM files and signature tarballs (#2086)") (v0.29.5). Acknowledgements Thanks to Cody Harris H2O.ai and Markus Boehme for independently reporting this issue.

Published by the source

18 Jul 2025, 20:13 UTC

Last modified by the source

18 Jul 2025, 20:13 UTC

Source last checked

26 Oct 2026, 15:09 UTC

1. Revision 1 · created · 26 Oct 2026

   Published from ghsa record GHSA-5662-cv6m-63wh

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# Patch Next advisory brief: CVE-2025-54059

Advisory: melange's world-writable permissions expose SBOM files to potential image tampering
IDs: CVE-2025-54059, GHSA-5662-cv6m-63wh
Record: https://patchnext.com/advisories/cve-2025-54059 (revision 1, source checked 26 Oct 2026, 15:09 UTC)
Inventory: none attached. This brief comes from a public page and does not say whether any deployment is affected.
Severity: Medium (CVSS 4.4)
Exploitation: no confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next confirms exploitation only from CISA KEV.
Vendor response: Vendor fix available; fixed versions by package: chainguard.dev/melange 0.29.5. A vendor fix does not mean a deployment is fixed.

## Affected components
- Go chainguard.dev/melange: affected >= 0.23.0, < 0.29.5; fixed in 0.29.5

## Suggested inspection (read-only)
- Go chainguard.dev/melange: check the installed version with your package manager.

## Supported action
Upgrade each affected component to a fixed version on its release line. For a transitive dependency, upgrade the parent package or add an override or constraint, then regenerate the lockfile. Redeploy every environment that ran an affected version.

## Required regression checks
- Run the test suite and a production build.
- Exercise the features that depend on chainguard.dev/melange.
- Repeat the inspection and confirm that only fixed versions remain installed.

## Rollback considerations
- Keep the previous lockfile and deployment artifact. Rolling back reinstates the vulnerable version, so apply any documented mitigation while you fix forward.

## Unresolved questions
- Which deployments run an affected version?
- Exploitation status can change. Check again before lowering the priority.
- Mark the work resolved only after the fixed version is verified in production.

## Sources
- Verified: https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-5662-cv6m-63wh (GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-5662-cv6m-63wh lists affected ranges: Go chainguard.dev/melange >=0.23.0 <0.29.5)

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