Command execution via shell-expanded distributionUrl
Published Aug 19, 2026 · Updated Aug 19, 2026
Command injection in Gradle Wrapper handling in Mend.io Renovate before 42.68.5 allows attackers to execute commands via distributionUrl. The wrapper update path passes distributionUrl from gradle/wrapper/gradle-wrapper.properties to ./gradlew :wrapper through a shell, so $(...) and similar substitutions run before Gradle parses the URI. Reachability requires a malicious gradle-wrapper.properties to land in a scanned repository, typically through repository write access or a merged pull request, and execution still occurs when allowScripts is disabled.
Summary
What happened
Command injection in Gradle Wrapper handling in Mend.io Renovate before 42.68.5 allows attackers to execute commands via distributionUrl. The wrapper update path passes distributionUrl from gradle/wrapper/gradle-wrapper.properties to ./gradlew :wrapper through a shell, so $(...) and similar substitutions run before Gradle parses the URI. Reachability requires a malicious gradle-wrapper.properties to land in a scanned repository, typically through repository write access or a merged pull request, and execution still occurs when allowScripts is disabled.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-76228
- Published
- Aug 19, 2026
- Updated
- Aug 19, 2026
- Vendor
- Mend.io
- Product
- Renovate
- Classifications
- CWE-78, T1059
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Aug 19, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 19, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=0 <13.3.0
- Affected versionversion=32.124.0 <42.68.5
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
- GHSA-pfq2-hh62-7m96 proof of conceptproof of concept · demonstrated
Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.
Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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