CVE-2024-53859 — v2
MEDIUMCVE-2024-53859 is a medium-severity (CVSS 6.5) Information Exposure vulnerability in github.com/cli/go-gh/v2. A fix is available for github.com/cli/go-gh/v2 — see the affected versions and patch details below.
go-gh `auth.TokenForHost` violates GitHub host security boundary within a codespace
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
- CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2024-53859.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2024-53859 plotted by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). The shaded corner — EPSS 50%+ and CVSS 7.0+ — is where this CVE doesn't sit, though severity or exploitability alone can still warrant action.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 377,636 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
github.com/cli/go-gh/v2🐹github.com/cli/go-ghReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Go packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
go-gh is a Go module for interacting with the gh utility and the GitHub API from the command line. A security vulnerability has been identified in go-gh that could leak authentication tokens intended for GitHub hosts to non-GitHub hosts when within a codespace. go-gh sources authentication tokens from different environment variables depending on the host involved: 1. GITHUB_TOKEN, GH_TOKEN for GitHub.com and ghe.com and 2. GITHUB_ENTERPRISE_TOKEN, GH_ENTERPRISE_TOKEN for GitHub Enterprise Server. Prior to version 2.11.1, auth.TokenForHost could source a token from the GITHUB_TOKEN environment variable for a host other than GitHub.com or ghe.com when within a codespace. In version 2.11.1, auth.TokenForHost will only source a token from the GITHUB_TOKEN environment variable for GitHub.com or ghe.com hosts. Successful exploitation could send authentication token to an unintended host. This issue has been addressed in version 2.11.1 and all users are advised to upgrade. Users are also advised to regenerate authentication tokens and to review their personal security log and any relevant audit logs for actions associated with their account or enterprise.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/cli/go-gh/v2 | all versions | 2.11.1go get github.com/cli/go-gh/v2@v2.11.1 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/cli/go-gh | all versions | No fix |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/cli/go-gh/v2, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/cli/go-gh/v2 to 2.11.1 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2024-53859 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How O3 protects you
O3 Security's impact-aware SCA analyses which vulnerable code paths your application actually calls, so a match like CVE-2024-53859 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2024-53859. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Fixing This On Your OS
If you run this on a Linux distribution, patch through your package manager against the distro's own security advisory below — it tracks the exact backported fix for your release, which can ship on a different timeline (and sometimes a different severity) than the upstream project.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2024-53859 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2024-53859 across Go dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.