CVE-2026-45408: Dokku: OS Command Injection via App Name in Git Pre-Receive Hook

Severity: critical (CVSS 9.0 v3.1)
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 0.4% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: none known
Published: 2026-06-26 · updated 2026-06-26
Weakness: CWE-78

Description

Dokku is a docker-powered PaaS. Prior to 0.38.2, the app name validation regex (^[a-z0-9][^/:_A-Z]*$) permits shell metacharacters. When an authenticated user pushes to a git remote with a crafted app name, the name is embedded unquoted into a bash pre-receive hook script via an unquoted heredoc (<<EOF instead of <<'EOF') in fn-git-create-hook() at plugins/git/internal-functions:378. On git push, bash interprets the semicolon as a command separator, executing arbitrary commands as the dokku user. This vulnerability is fixed in 0.38.2.

Affected products

dokku: before 0.38.2 — fixed in 0.38.2

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: dokku 0.38.2. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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