GHSA-8c39-xppg-479c
Pterodactyl does not revoke SFTP access when server is deleted or permissions reduced
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.
Blast Radius
github.com/pterodactyl/wings🐘pterodactyl/panelReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Go, Packagist packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Summary
Pterodactyl does not revoke active SFTP connections when a user is removed from a server instance or has their permissions changes with respect to file access over SFTP. This allows a user that was already connected to SFTP to remain connected and access files even after their permissions are revoked.
Details
When a user opens a connection to a server using the Wings SFTP server instance the permissions are checked and returned from the authentication API call made to the Panel. However, credentials are not checked again after the initial handshake. Thus, if a user is removed from a server in the panel or have their permissions modified, those permissions are not updated in the SFTP connection.
As a result, a user that has already gained access to a server's files via the SFTP subsystem will maintain those permissions until disconnected (via Wings restart, or a manual disconnection on their end).
[!NOTE]
This issue impacts the SFTP subsystem for server files specifically. There is no exposure of Wings private data, or any data outside of a server's local filesystem. Additionally, a user must have been connected to SFTP at the time of their permissions being revoked in order for this issue to be exploited. If a user was not connected, they would not be able to connect once their permissions were reduced.
Fix
Please upgrade to [email protected] and [email protected] to resolve this issue. Patches are available via the implementation PRs, but it is recommended to apply by upgrading the entire instance.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/pterodactyl/wings | all versions | 1.12.0 |
| 🐘Packagist | pterodactyl/panel | all versions | 1.12.0 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/pterodactyl/wings. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update github.com/pterodactyl/wings to 1.12.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-8c39-xppg-479c 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 pinpoints whether GHSA-8c39-xppg-479c is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to GHSA-8c39-xppg-479c. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-8c39-xppg-479c in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-8c39-xppg-479c across Go, Packagist dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.