GitPython: Unguarded git option forwarding in Repo.init enables arbitrary command execution via --template clone hooks

Exploitation

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

CVSS

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

EPSS

• CVE-2026-76218: 0.72% estimated exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 53.96 (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 Repo.init() forwards kwargs verbatim to git init with no unsafe-option guard and no allowunsafeoptions parameter. git init --template=<dir copies <dir/hooks/ into the new repo's .git/hooks, so an attacker-controlled template kwarg plants a hook that executes on the next git operation → arbitrary code execution. --template is already recognized as unsafe for clone (it is on unsafegitcloneoptions, and GHSA-6p8h-3wgx-97gf covers the clone path), but Repo.init is a distinct method that never received a guard and needs an independent fix. Root Cause Repo.init(path, mkdir, odbt, expandvars, kwargs) is a bare git.init(kwargs) (git/repo/base.py:1435) with no checkunsafeoptions and no allowunsafeoptions. Impact Arbitrary code execution (hook fires on next git op) at the privileges of the host process. Two preconditions raise attack complexity (AC:H): the app must forward a template= kwarg (KEY control) AND the attacker must stage an executable hook directory at a known path — the same…

Published by the source

7 Aug 2026, 15:36 UTC

Last modified by the source

8 Sep 2026, 20:54 UTC

Source last checked

26 Oct 2026, 13:51 UTC

1. Revision 1 · created · 26 Oct 2026

   Published from ghsa record GHSA-9rj7-rf2p-w77r

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# Patch Next advisory brief: CVE-2026-76218

Advisory: GitPython: Unguarded git option forwarding in Repo.init enables arbitrary command execution via --template clone hooks
IDs: CVE-2026-76218, GHSA-9rj7-rf2p-w77r
Record: https://patchnext.com/advisories/cve-2026-76218 (revision 1, source checked 26 Oct 2026, 13:51 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: gitpython 3.1.58. A vendor fix does not mean a deployment is fixed.

## Affected components
- PyPI gitpython: affected <= 3.1.57; fixed in 3.1.58

## Suggested inspection (read-only)
- `python -m pip show gitpython`: prints the installed version. Run with the environment that serves production active.

## 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 gitpython.
- 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-9rj7-rf2p-w77r (GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-9rj7-rf2p-w77r lists affected ranges: PyPI gitpython >=0 <=3.1.57)

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