CVE-2025-24971: DumpDrop RCE Vulnerability

CVE-2025-24971 Overview

CVE-2025-24971 is a critical OS Command Injection vulnerability discovered in DumbDrop, a simple file upload application that provides an interface for dragging and dropping files. The vulnerability exists in the /upload/init endpoint and can allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code remotely when the Apprise Notification feature is enabled.

Critical Impact

This command injection vulnerability enables unauthenticated remote code execution, potentially allowing attackers to fully compromise the server hosting DumbDrop when Apprise notifications are configured.

Affected Products

• DumbDrop (versions prior to commit 4ff8469d)
• DumbDrop installations with Apprise Notification enabled

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-02-04 - CVE CVE-2025-24971 published to NVD
• 2025-02-04 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-24971

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified as CWE-78 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command), commonly known as OS Command Injection. The flaw exists in the sendNotification function within server.js, which handles Apprise notification delivery when files are uploaded.

The vulnerable code constructs a shell command by directly interpolating user-controlled data (the filename) into the command string without proper sanitization. When an attacker uploads a file with a specially crafted filename containing shell metacharacters, the malicious payload is executed with the privileges of the DumbDrop application process.

The vulnerability requires the Apprise Notification feature to be enabled, as the command injection occurs during the notification dispatch process. However, when this feature is active, the attack can be executed remotely without any authentication, making it particularly dangerous.

Root Cause

The root cause of CVE-2025-24971 is the unsafe construction of shell commands using string interpolation with unsanitized user input. The original code used template string construction (apprise "${APPRISE_URL}" -b "${message}") where the message variable contained the uploaded filename directly. This pattern allows shell metacharacters in filenames to break out of the intended command context and execute arbitrary commands.

Attack Vector

An attacker can exploit this vulnerability by uploading a file with a malicious filename containing shell command injection payloads. Since the file upload endpoint (/upload/init) does not require authentication and the filename is passed directly to the shell command, an attacker can craft filenames such as $(whoami).txt or "; rm -rf / #.txt to execute arbitrary commands on the server. The attack is network-accessible and requires no user interaction beyond having Apprise notifications enabled.

     return totalSize;
 }
 
-// Modify the sendNotification function
+// Modify the sendNotification function to safely escape the message
 async function sendNotification(filename, fileSize) {
     if (!APPRISE_URL) return;
 
     try {
         const formattedSize = formatFileSize(fileSize);
         const totalStorage = formatFileSize(calculateDirectorySize(uploadDir));
+        
+        // Sanitize the message components
+        const sanitizedFilename = JSON.stringify(filename).slice(1, -1); // Escape special characters
         const message = APPRISE_MESSAGE
-            .replace('{filename}', filename)
+            .replace('{filename}', sanitizedFilename)
             .replace('{size}', formattedSize)
             .replace('{storage}', totalStorage);
+
+        // Use array syntax to avoid shell interpretation
+        await execAsync(['apprise', APPRISE_URL, '-b', message], {
+            shell: false
+        });
         
-        // Execute apprise command
-        await execAsync(`apprise "${APPRISE_URL}" -b "${message}"`);
-        log.info(`Notification sent for: ${filename} (${formattedSize}, Total storage: ${totalStorage})`);
+        log.info(`Notification sent for: ${sanitizedFilename} (${formattedSize}, Total storage: ${totalStorage})`);
     } catch (err) {

Source: GitHub Commit Details

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-24971

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual file uploads to the DumbDrop /upload/init endpoint containing shell metacharacters in filenames (e.g., $(), backticks, semicolons, pipes)
• Unexpected process spawning from the DumbDrop Node.js process
• Anomalous outbound network connections or reverse shell activity originating from the DumbDrop server
• Suspicious entries in application logs showing malformed or encoded filenames

Detection Strategies

• Monitor file upload requests to DumbDrop for filenames containing shell injection patterns such as $(, `, ;, |, &&, or ||
• Implement network-level detection for command injection payload patterns in HTTP POST data to the /upload/init endpoint
• Deploy endpoint detection rules to identify child processes spawned by Node.js that are inconsistent with normal DumbDrop operation
• Review Apprise notification logs for command execution errors or unexpected output

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable verbose logging for the DumbDrop application and monitor for execution errors in the notification subsystem
• Configure file integrity monitoring on the DumbDrop installation directory to detect unauthorized modifications
• Set up alerting for any command execution failures or shell errors in application logs
• Monitor process execution chains from the Node.js runtime for anomalous behavior

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-24971

Immediate Actions Required

• Update DumbDrop to commit 4ff8469d or later immediately
• If immediate patching is not possible, disable the Apprise Notification feature until the update can be applied
• Review server logs for signs of exploitation attempts
• Audit any files that have been uploaded to verify they are legitimate

Patch Information

The vulnerability has been addressed in commit 4ff8469d of the DumbDrop repository. The fix implements two key security improvements: input sanitization using JSON.stringify() to escape special characters in filenames, and switching from shell command string interpolation to array-based command execution with shell: false to prevent shell interpretation of metacharacters. All users are strongly advised to apply this patch. For more details, see the GitHub Security Advisory GHSA-rx8m-jqm7-vcgp.

Workarounds

• Disable the Apprise Notification feature by removing or unsetting the APPRISE_URL configuration until the patch can be applied
• Implement network-level filtering to block file uploads with suspicious filename patterns as a temporary measure
• Restrict network access to the DumbDrop application to trusted IP addresses only

# Disable Apprise notifications by unsetting the environment variable
unset APPRISE_URL

# Or remove from docker-compose.yml / configuration file
# APPRISE_URL=