CVE-2025-61260
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 vulnerability was identified in OpenAI Codex CLI v0.23.0 and before that enables code execution through malicious MCP (Model Context Protocol) configuration files. The attack is triggered when a user runs the codex command inside a malicious or compromised repository. Codex automatically loads project-local .env and .codex/config.toml files without requiring user confirmation, allowing attackers to embed arbitrary commands that execute immediately.
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 confidenceOpenAI Codex CLI v0.23.0 and earlier automatically loads project-local .env and .codex/config.toml files without user confirmation when executing the codex command in a directory. This allows attackers who control a repository (or compromise one) to embed malicious commands in these configuration files that execute immediately with the user's privileges.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
CVSS 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
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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.
-
Check if OpenAI Codex CLI is installedRun 'codex --version' or 'which codex' to verify installationAffected if codex command is found and executable in the system
-
Determine the installed Codex CLI versionExecute 'codex --version' and compare the version number to 0.23.0Affected if The version is 0.23.0 or earlier (e.g., 0.22.0, 0.21.0, etc.)
-
Identify directories where codex is typically runReview project workflows or check recent shell history for directories where 'codex' command was executedAffected if codex is run in directories that could contain untrusted or borrowed repository files
-
Check for presence of .env or .codex/config.toml filesIn directories where codex runs, list files: 'ls -la .env' and 'ls -la .codex/config.toml'Affected if Either .env or .codex/config.toml files exist in directories where codex is invoked, especially in repositories from untrusted sources
-
Verify automatic loading behaviorRun 'codex' in a test directory containing a benign .env or .codex/config.toml and observe if it reads them without promptingAffected if The codex command loads and processes these config files without requesting user confirmation (this behavior is inherent to versions 0.23.0 and earlier)
A user is affected if they run OpenAI Codex CLI version 0.23.0 or earlier in any directory containing .env or .codex/config.toml files, particularly in cloned or borrowed repositories where those files may be attacker-controlled.
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.
From vendor dataAvoid running codex in untrusted or unfamiliar repositories until a patched version is available; implement directory isolation or configuration file validation as a compensating control.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,224.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-61260 — 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-2025-61260 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data