CVE-2024-21644
pyLoad unauthenticated flask configuration leakage
pyLoad is the free and open-source Download Manager written in pure Python. Any unauthenticated user can browse to a specific URL to expose the Flask config, including the SECRET_KEY variable. This issue has been patched in version 0.5.0b3.dev77.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges needed
- None
- User interaction
- None
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
7.5
pyLoad unauthenticated flask configuration leakage
pyLoad is the free and open-source Download Manager written in pure Python. Any unauthenticated user can browse to a specific URL to expose the Flask config, including the SECRET_KEY variable. This issue has been patched in version 0.5.0b3.dev77.
- Record
CVE-2024-21644- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-284
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2024-0387
7.5
pyLoad is the free and open-source Download Manager written in pure Python. Any unauthenticated user can browse to a specific URL to expose the Flask config, including the SECRET_KEY variable. This issue has been patched in version 0.5.0b3.dev77.
- Record
EUVD-2024-0387- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N - Updated
- 2026-11-02
GitHub AdvisoriesGHSA-mqpq-2p68-46fv
7.5
pyload Unauthenticated Flask Configuration Leakage vulnerability
Summary
Any unauthenticated user can browse to a specific URL to expose the Flask config, including the SECRET_KEY variable.
Details
Any unauthenticated user can browse to a specific URL to expose the Flask config, including the SECRET_KEY variable.
PoC
Run pyload in the default configuration by running the following command
pyload
Now browse to http://localhost:8000/render/info.html. Notice how the Flask configuration gets displayed.
I was quite amused by this finding. I think it's a very interesting coming together of things that is so unlikely to happen. Below I will detail my process a bit more.
I was looking through the code to see how the authorization mechanism is implemented when I spotted this route, which can be accessed by any unauthenticated actor
@bp.route("/render/<path:filename>", endpoint="render")
def render(filename):
mimetype = mimetypes.guess_type(filename)[0] or "text/html"
data = render_template(filename)
return flask.Response(data, mimetype=mimetype)
This route allows me to load in any of the predefined templates. However, these templates will be lacking any form of context, and as such it doesn't seem too useful. That is until I loaded the info.html template and scrolled down, revealing the Flask config. This was purely accidental, and I did not understand why it happened, until I looked at the template
<tr>
<td>{{ _("Config folder:") }}</td>
<td>{{ config }}</td>
</tr>
In Flask, every template always gets the Flask config passed to it as the config variable. In the normal execution of this template, this value gets overwritten in the function below, but since we're calling it and bypassing this function altogether, it doesn't get overwritten. Would this variable not be named config and named configuration or Config instead, then this exploit wouldn't work. The likelihood of this occurring is so small, but it seems to have happened here.
context = {
"python": sys.version,
"os": " ".join((os.name, sys.platform) + extra),
"version": api.get_server_version(),
"folder": PKGDIR,
"config": api.get_userdir(),
"download": conf["general"]["storage_folder"]["value"],
"freespace": format.size(api.free_space()),
"webif": conf["webui"]["port"]["value"],
"language": conf["general"]["language"]["value"],
}
return render_template("info.html", **context)
Impact
Depending on the how the Flask config data is used, it could have detrimental consequences for the security. It's crucial to keep the SECRET_KEY secret and never expose it in your code or configuration files.
- Record
GHSA-mqpq-2p68-46fv- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-284
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
7.5
pyLoad is the free and open-source Download Manager written in pure Python. Any unauthenticated user can browse to a specific URL to expose the Flask config, including the SECRET_KEY variable. This issue has been patched in version 0.5.0b3.dev77.
- Record
CVE-2024-21644- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-284
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV
7.5
pyLoad unauthenticated flask configuration leakage
pyLoad is the free and open-source Download Manager written in pure Python. Any unauthenticated user can browse to a specific URL to expose the Flask config, including the SECRET_KEY variable. This issue has been patched in version 0.5.0b3.dev77.
- Record
CVE-2024-21644- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-284
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVGHSA-mqpq-2p68-46fv
7.5
pyload Unauthenticated Flask Configuration Leakage vulnerability
Summary
Any unauthenticated user can browse to a specific URL to expose the Flask config, including the SECRET_KEY variable.
Details
Any unauthenticated user can browse to a specific URL to expose the Flask config, including the SECRET_KEY variable.
PoC
Run pyload in the default configuration by running the following command
pyload
Now browse to http://localhost:8000/render/info.html. Notice how the Flask configuration gets displayed.
I was quite amused by this finding. I think it's a very interesting coming together of things that is so unlikely to happen. Below I will detail my process a bit more.
I was looking through the code to see how the authorization mechanism is implemented when I spotted this route, which can be accessed by any unauthenticated actor
@bp.route("/render/<path:filename>", endpoint="render")
def render(filename):
mimetype = mimetypes.guess_type(filename)[0] or "text/html"
data = render_template(filename)
return flask.Response(data, mimetype=mimetype)
This route allows me to load in any of the predefined templates. However, these templates will be lacking any form of context, and as such it doesn't seem too useful. That is until I loaded the info.html template and scrolled down, revealing the Flask config. This was purely accidental, and I did not understand why it happened, until I looked at the template
<tr>
<td>{{ _("Config folder:") }}</td>
<td>{{ config }}</td>
</tr>
In Flask, every template always gets the Flask config passed to it as the config variable. In the normal execution of this template, this value gets overwritten in the function below, but since we're calling it and bypassing this function altogether, it doesn't get overwritten. Would this variable not be named config and named configuration or Config instead, then this exploit wouldn't work. The likelihood of this occurring is so small, but it seems to have happened here.
context = {
"python": sys.version,
"os": " ".join((os.name, sys.platform) + extra),
"version": api.get_server_version(),
"folder": PKGDIR,
"config": api.get_userdir(),
"download": conf["general"]["storage_folder"]["value"],
"freespace": format.size(api.free_space()),
"webif": conf["webui"]["port"]["value"],
"language": conf["general"]["language"]["value"],
}
return render_template("info.html", **context)
Impact
Depending on the how the Flask config data is used, it could have detrimental consequences for the security. It's crucial to keep the SECRET_KEY secret and never expose it in your code or configuration files.
- Record
GHSA-mqpq-2p68-46fv- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-284
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVPYSEC-2026-1820
7.5
pyload Unauthenticated Flask Configuration Leakage vulnerability
Summary
Any unauthenticated user can browse to a specific URL to expose the Flask config, including the SECRET_KEY variable.
Details
Any unauthenticated user can browse to a specific URL to expose the Flask config, including the SECRET_KEY variable.
PoC
Run pyload in the default configuration by running the following command
pyload
Now browse to http://localhost:8000/render/info.html. Notice how the Flask configuration gets displayed.
I was quite amused by this finding. I think it's a very interesting coming together of things that is so unlikely to happen. Below I will detail my process a bit more.
I was looking through the code to see how the authorization mechanism is implemented when I spotted this route, which can be accessed by any unauthenticated actor
@bp.route("/render/<path:filename>", endpoint="render")
def render(filename):
mimetype = mimetypes.guess_type(filename)[0] or "text/html"
data = render_template(filename)
return flask.Response(data, mimetype=mimetype)
This route allows me to load in any of the predefined templates. However, these templates will be lacking any form of context, and as such it doesn't seem too useful. That is until I loaded the info.html template and scrolled down, revealing the Flask config. This was purely accidental, and I did not understand why it happened, until I looked at the template
<tr>
<td>{{ _("Config folder:") }}</td>
<td>{{ config }}</td>
</tr>
In Flask, every template always gets the Flask config passed to it as the config variable. In the normal execution of this template, this value gets overwritten in the function below, but since we're calling it and bypassing this function altogether, it doesn't get overwritten. Would this variable not be named config and named configuration or Config instead, then this exploit wouldn't work. The likelihood of this occurring is so small, but it seems to have happened here.
context = {
"python": sys.version,
"os": " ".join((os.name, sys.platform) + extra),
"version": api.get_server_version(),
"folder": PKGDIR,
"config": api.get_userdir(),
"download": conf["general"]["storage_folder"]["value"],
"freespace": format.size(api.free_space()),
"webif": conf["webui"]["port"]["value"],
"language": conf["general"]["language"]["value"],
}
return render_template("info.html", **context)
Impact
Depending on the how the Flask config data is used, it could have detrimental consequences for the security. It's crucial to keep the SECRET_KEY secret and never expose it in your code or configuration files.
- Record
PYSEC-2026-1820- CVSS 3.1
- 7.5 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N - Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
Affected packages
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
pyload-ngPyPI |
before 0.5.0b3.dev77 | 0.5.0b3.dev77 |
pyload-ngPyPI |
before 0.5.0b3.dev77, plus listed versions 0.5.0a5.dev5280.5.0a5.dev5320.5.0a5.dev5350.5.0a5.dev5360.5.0a5.dev537 Show 45 moreShow less0.5.0a5.dev5390.5.0a5.dev5400.5.0a5.dev5450.5.0a5.dev5620.5.0a5.dev5640.5.0a5.dev5650.5.0a6.dev5700.5.0a6.dev5780.5.0a6.dev5870.5.0a7.dev5960.5.0a8.dev6020.5.0a9.dev6150.5.0a9.dev6290.5.0a9.dev6320.5.0a9.dev6410.5.0a9.dev6430.5.0a9.dev6550.5.0a9.dev8060.5.0b1.dev10.5.0b1.dev20.5.0b1.dev30.5.0b1.dev40.5.0b1.dev50.5.0b2.dev100.5.0b2.dev110.5.0b2.dev120.5.0b2.dev90.5.0b3.dev130.5.0b3.dev140.5.0b3.dev170.5.0b3.dev180.5.0b3.dev190.5.0b3.dev200.5.0b3.dev210.5.0b3.dev220.5.0b3.dev240.5.0b3.dev260.5.0b3.dev270.5.0b3.dev280.5.0b3.dev290.5.0b3.dev300.5.0b3.dev310.5.0b3.dev320.5.0b3.dev330.5.0b3.dev34 |
0.5.0b3.dev77 |
Public exploits
Links only. Every CVE stores no exploit code.
| Source | Link | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Nuclei | pyLoad Flask Config - Access Control | |
| PoC in GitHub | ltranquility/CVE-2024-21644-Poc | 2024-03-30 |
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| first indexed | CVE List, EUVD, GitHub Advisories, Nuclei, NVD, OSV, PoC in GitHub |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2024-21644 is a high vulnerability (CVSS 7.5) in Pyload, published January 8, 2024. Public exploit code exists. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 42.4%, the 98th percentile. Fixed in pyload-ng 0.5.0b3.dev77.
References
github.com/pyload/pyload/security/advisories/GHSA-mqpq-2p68-46fv
github.com/pyload/pyload/commit/bb22063a875ffeca357aaf6e2edcd09705688c40
nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-21644
github.com/advisories/GHSA-mqpq-2p68-46fv
github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/tree/main/cves/2024/21xxx/CVE-2024-21644.json
github.com/pyload/pyload
pypi.org/project/pyload-ng
Left out here: 34 versions. The JSON record has them.