CVE-2026-25500

MEDIUM5.4EPSS 0.03%

Stored XSS in Rack::Directory via javascript: filenames rendered into anchor href

Published: 2/17/2026Modified: 3/10/2026
Also known as:GHSA-whrj-4476-wvmpCGA-c5jr-5288-fhr3

Description

## Summary `Rack::Directory` generates an HTML directory index where each file entry is rendered as a clickable link. If a file exists on disk whose basename begins with the `javascript:` scheme (e.g. `javascript:alert(1)`), the generated index includes an anchor whose `href` attribute is exactly `javascript:alert(1)`. Clicking this entry executes arbitrary JavaScript in the context of the hosting application. This results in a client-side XSS condition in directory listings generated by `Rack::Directory`. ## Details `Rack::Directory` renders directory entries using an HTML row template similar to: ```html <a href='%s'>%s</a> ``` The `%s` placeholder is populated directly with the file’s basename. If the basename begins with `javascript:`, the resulting HTML contains an executable JavaScript URL: ```html <a href='javascript:alert(1)'>javascript:alert(1)</a> ``` Because the value is inserted directly into the `href` attribute without scheme validation or normalization, browsers interpret it as a JavaScript URI. When a user clicks the link, the JavaScript executes in the origin of the Rack application. ## Impact If `Rack::Directory` is used to expose filesystem contents over HTTP, an attacker who can create or upload files within that directory may introduce a malicious filename beginning with `javascript:`. When a user visits the directory listing and clicks the entry, arbitrary JavaScript executes in the application's origin. Exploitation requires user interaction (clicking the malicious entry). ## Mitigation * Update to a patched version of Rack in which `Rack::Directory` prefixes generated anchors with a relative path indicator (e.g. `./filename`). * Avoid exposing user-controlled directories via `Rack::Directory`. * Apply a strict Content Security Policy (CSP) to reduce impact of potential client-side execution issues. * Where feasible, restrict or sanitize uploaded filenames to disallow dangerous URI scheme prefixes. HackerOne profile: https://hackerone.com/thesmartshadow GitHub account owner: Ali Firas (@thesmartshadow)

Affected packages (2)

CVSS scores

SourceVersionSeverityVector
osvCVSS 3.1MEDIUM5.4CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N

References (6)