Gitea: Internal API HTTP client hardcodes InsecureSkipVerify:true with no config override

Exploitation

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

CVSS

7.5 · CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

EPSS

• CVE-2026-54481: 0.30% estimated exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 22.82 (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.

Summary Gitea's internal API HTTP client (modules/private/internal.go) hardcodes TLSClientConfig.InsecureSkipVerify = true with no configuration override. It is the only outbound TLS client in the codebase that cannot be made to verify its peer's certificate — webhook, migrations, MinIO, LDAP, SMTP, Redis and incoming-mail all expose a secure-by-default SkipVerify toggle, this one does not. When an operator configures internal communication over HTTPS to a non-loopback target (LOCALROOTURL=https://<host/ in a split-host / multi-pod topology), the gitea serv / gitea hook subprocess that calls the internal API will accept ANY TLS certificate. An attacker with on-path position on that internal segment can MITM the connection and capture the static high-privilege INTERNALTOKEN, which is the sole authentication for every /api/internal/ endpoint (server shutdown/restart, SSH key authorization, git command execution, repo hooks, mail send, runner-token generation). Severity is…

Published by the source

21 Jul 2026, 20:41 UTC

Last modified by the source

21 Jul 2026, 20:41 UTC

Source last checked

26 Oct 2026, 15:27 UTC

1. Revision 1 · created · 26 Oct 2026

   Published from ghsa record GHSA-94v3-77j7-vm48

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# Patch Next advisory brief: CVE-2026-54481

Advisory: Gitea: Internal API HTTP client hardcodes InsecureSkipVerify:true with no config override
IDs: CVE-2026-54481, GHSA-94v3-77j7-vm48
Record: https://patchnext.com/advisories/cve-2026-54481 (revision 1, source checked 26 Oct 2026, 15:27 UTC)
Inventory: none attached. This brief comes from a public page and does not say whether any deployment is affected.
Severity: High (CVSS 7.5)
Exploitation: no confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next confirms exploitation only from CISA KEV.
Vendor response: Vendor fix available; fixed versions by package: code.gitea.io/gitea 1.27.0. A vendor fix does not mean a deployment is fixed.

## Affected components
- Go code.gitea.io/gitea: affected < 1.27.0; fixed in 1.27.0

## Suggested inspection (read-only)
- Go code.gitea.io/gitea: 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 code.gitea.io/gitea.
- 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-94v3-77j7-vm48 (GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-94v3-77j7-vm48 lists affected ranges: Go code.gitea.io/gitea >=0 <1.27.0)

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