Description
Hugo 0.161.0 placed the Node asset pipelines behind the Node.js permission model so that code running through PostCSS, Babel, or TailwindCSS could not reach the file system outside the project directory. Hugo 0.162.0 added tailwindcss to the AllowChildProcess default in config/security/securityConfig.go, which makes nodePermissionArgs in common/hexec/exec.go append --allow-child-process whenever the tool being launched is named tailwindcss. TailwindCSS loads the site's tailwind.config.js through require at startup, so top-level code in that file executes inside the permitted Node process and can call child_process to spawn a shell. The spawned process is not a Node process and inherits none of the permission flags, so it runs with the full privileges of the account performing the build. Building a site whose theme, module, or starter template supplies the Tailwind configuration therefore yields arbitrary command execution rather than the confined file access the permission model was introduced to enforce. Hugo 0.165.0 removes tailwindcss from the default security.exec.allow list, so the tool is no longer launched under the default configuration.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|---|
| gohugoio | hugo | 0.162.0 – < 0.165.0 | 0.165.0 |
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 14 | hugo | 0.165.0-1 | — |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 26.10 | hugo | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | hugo | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 22.04 LTS | hugo | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 20.04 LTS | hugo | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 18.04 LTS | hugo | No fix yet | — |
Show 2 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 16.04 LTS | hugo | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu Pro 24.04 LTS | hugo | No fix yet | — |
References
- https://github.com/gohugoio/hugo/commit/8a55df7af2e6da31297245cc54fa2e3b521d93e8 patch
- https://github.com/gohugoio/hugo/issues/15178 issue-tracking
- https://github.com/gohugoio/hugo/blob/v0.164.0/config/security/securityConfig.go#L72-L79 technical-description
- https://github.com/gohugoio/hugo/blob/v0.164.0/common/hexec/exec.go#L292-L295 technical-description
- https://github.com/gohugoio/hugo product
- VulnCheck Advisory: Hugo 0.162.0 to 0.164.x - Node Permission Model Bypass via Default TailwindCSS Child-Process Grant third-party-advisory