CVE intelligence and bounded remediation

CVE-2020-26284 — Hugo is a fast and Flexible Static Site Generator built in Go

High CVSS 8.5

Hugo is a fast and Flexible Static Site Generator built in Go. Hugo depends on Go's `os/exec` for certain features, e.g. for rendering of Pandoc documents if these binaries are found in the system `%PATH%` on Windows. In Hugo before version 0.79.1, if a malicious file with the same name (`exe` or `bat`) is found in the current working directory at the time of running `hugo`, the malicious command will be invoked instead of the system one. Windows users who run `hugo` inside untrusted Hugo sites are affected. Users should upgrade to Hugo v0.79.1. Other than avoiding untrusted Hugo sites, there is no workaround.

Severity
High
CVSS
8.5 (3.1)
Published
2020-12-21
CISA KEV
Not currently listed
Ecosystem
windows/system
Weaknesses
CWE-78

Affected products

  • gohugo / hugo

Matched remediation archetype

Command, code, expression, and template injection

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Check exposure

  • Trace untrusted values to process execution, interpreters, evaluators, template engines, dynamic imports, and administrative scripting features.
  • Determine whether the affected path is reachable across each trust boundary and which service account or host privilege it inherits.
  • Review configuration for optional execution features, unsafe compatibility modes, and shell invocation.

Remediate safely

  • Replace string-built commands or evaluated code with fixed operations and structured argument APIs that do not invoke a shell.
  • Use strict allowlists for operation identifiers and reject unexpected input before it reaches any interpreter.
  • Update the affected component and add inert regression tests covering metacharacters, encoding variants, and alternate request paths.

Authoritative sources

Complete CVE record and remediation plan

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