Enterprise ServerApplication · GitHub
CVE-2025-11578
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedA privilege escalation vulnerability was identified in GitHub Enterprise Server that allowed an authenticated Enterprise admin to gain root SSH access to the appliance by exploiting a symlink escape in pre-receive hook environments. By crafting a malicious repository and environment, an attacker could replace system binaries during hook cleanup and execute a payload that adds their own SSH key to the root user’s authorized keys—thereby granting themselves root SSH access to the server. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker needed to have enterprise admin privileges. This vulnerability affected all versions of GitHub Enterprise Server prior to 3.19, and was fixed in versions 3.14.20, 3.15.15, 3.16.11, 3.17.8, 3.18.2. This vulnerability was reported via the GitHub Bug Bounty program.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceA privilege escalation vulnerability in GitHub Enterprise Server allowed authenticated Enterprise admins to gain root SSH access by exploiting a symlink escape in pre-receive hook environments. Attackers crafted malicious repositories and environments to replace system binaries during hook cleanup, then executed payloads that added their own SSH keys to root's authorized_keys file.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data
Enterprise ServerApplication
>= 3.14.0, < 3.14.20>= 3.15.0, < 3.15.15>= 3.16.0, < 3.16.11>= 3.17.0, < 3.17.8>= 3.18.0, < 3.18.2CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check GitHub Enterprise Server versionRun 'ghe-version' from the management shell or view the version in the Admin console under Site admin > Settings > AboutAffected if The installed version falls within any of these ranges: 3.14.0-3.14.19, 3.15.0-3.15.14, 3.16.0-3.16.10, 3.17.0-3.17.7, or 3.18.0-3.18.1
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Verify if Enterprise admin accounts existIn the Admin console, navigate to Enterprise > Settings > Admins to list all Enterprise administratorsAffected if Any Enterprise admin accounts are present in the affected version range
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Inspect root authorized_keys for unauthorized entriesFrom the management shell, examine /root/.ssh/authorized_keys and compare against known legitimate admin SSH keysAffected if There are SSH keys in root's authorized_keys that were not intentionally added by your administration team
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Review pre-receive hook environmentsIn the Admin console, go to Enterprise > Settings > Pre-receive hook environments and examine any custom environments, especially those with unusual file mounts or suspicious configurationsAffected if There are pre-receive hook environments with custom configurations that could allow symlink-based escapes
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Audit recent Enterprise admin activityIn the Admin console, review Enterprise > Settings > Audit log for suspicious activity such as creation of unusual repositories, environment modifications, or changes to system configurationsAffected if There are audit log entries showing creation of repositories or environments with unusual characteristics or modifications to system settings that were not initiated by authorized administrators
You are affected if your GitHub Enterprise Server version is within any of the affected ranges AND you have Enterprise admin accounts, regardless of whether you have already observed malicious activity.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
dbcve · scoped3.14.203.15.153.16.11
Update GitHub Enterprise Server to one of the fixed versions (3.14.20, 3.15.15, 3.16.11, 3.17.8, 3.18.2) or to version 3.19 or later. Additionally, review admin accounts and audit authorized_keys for root and other privileged users for any unauthorized entries.
Upgrade to 3.14.20, 3.15.15, 3.16.11, 3.17.8, or 3.18.2+ (latest stable release)
- 1. Back up all GitHub Enterprise Server data, including databases, repositories, and configurations.
- 2. Review the official GitHub Enterprise Server upgrade documentation at docs.github.com.
- 3. Schedule a maintenance window as upgrades require downtime.
- 4. Ensure you have console access and administrative credentials.
- 5. Upgrade to version 3.14.20, 3.15.15, 3.16.11, 3.17.8, or the latest stable version (3.18.2 or newer).
- 6. After upgrade, verify the pre-receive hook environment is functioning correctly.
- 7. Audit the root user's authorized_keys file to ensure no unauthorized keys were added.
- 8. Review audit logs for any suspicious pre-receive hook activity.
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Enterprise Server
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing10.0 h
- Review / QA6.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $9,504.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-11578 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-11578 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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