CVE-2026-44301 — hugo
CVE-2026-44301 is a Path Traversal vulnerability in github.com/gohugoio/hugo. A fix is available for github.com/gohugoio/hugo — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Hugo: Node tool execution allows file system access outside the project directory
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- CISA assesses this as automatable — exploitation doesn’t require manual, per-target effort, which raises the odds of mass scanning and opportunistic attacks.
- 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-2026-44301.
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.
Real-World Exposure
github.com/gohugoio/hugoReal-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
Impact
When building a Hugo site that uses Node-based asset pipelines (PostCSS, Babel, TailwindCSS), Hugo invoked the configured Node tools without restrictions on file system access. As a result, executing hugo against an untrusted site could allow code running through these tools to read or write files outside the project's working directory.
Users who do not use PostCSS, Babel, or TailwindCSS, or who only build trusted sites, are not affected.
Patches
From v0.161.0, Hugo runs Node tools under Node's permission model with strict defaults: No write access and only read access to the site source directories and files.
Workarounds
Block these tools in security.exec.allow.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/gohugoio/hugo | ≥ 0.43.0&&< 0.161.0 | 0.161.0go get github.com/gohugoio/hugo@v0.161.0 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/gohugoio/hugo, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/gohugoio/hugo to 0.161.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2026-44301 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-2026-44301 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2026-44301. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2026-44301 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2026-44301 across Go dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.