Описание
Glances's REST/WebUI Lacks Host Validation and Remains Exposed to DNS Rebinding
Summary
Glances recently added DNS rebinding protection for the MCP endpoint, but the main REST/WebUI FastAPI application still accepts arbitrary Host headers and does not apply TrustedHostMiddleware or an equivalent host allowlist.
As a result, the REST API, WebUI, and token endpoint remain reachable through attacker-controlled domains in classic DNS rebinding scenarios. Once the victim browser has rebound the attacker domain to the Glances service, same-origin policy no longer protects the API because the browser considers the rebinding domain to be the origin.
This is a distinct issue from the previously reported default CORS weakness. CORS is not required for exploitation here because DNS rebinding causes the victim browser to treat the malicious domain as same-origin with the rebinding target.
Details
The MCP endpoint now has explicit host-based transport security:
However, the main FastAPI application for REST/WebUI/token routes is initialized without any host validation middleware:
There is no TrustedHostMiddleware, no comparison against the configured bind host, and no allowlist enforcement for HTTP Host values on the REST/WebUI surface.
The default bind configuration also exposes the service on all interfaces:
This combination means the HTTP service will typically be reachable from the victim machine under an attacker-selected hostname once DNS is rebound to the Glances listener.
The token endpoint is also mounted on the same unprotected FastAPI app:
Why This Is Exploitable
In a DNS rebinding attack:
- The attacker serves JavaScript from
https://attacker.example. - The victim visits that page while a Glances instance is reachable on the victim network.
- The attacker's DNS for
attacker.exampleis rebound from the attacker's server to the Glances IP address. - The victim browser now sends same-origin requests to
https://attacker.example, but those requests are delivered to Glances. - Because the Glances REST/WebUI app does not validate the
Hostheader or enforce an allowed-host policy, it serves the response. - The attacker-controlled JavaScript can read the response as same-origin content.
The MCP code already acknowledges this threat model and implements host-level defenses. The REST/WebUI code path does not.
Proof of Concept
This issue is code-validated by inspection of the current implementation:
- REST/WebUI/token are all mounted on a plain
FastAPI(...)app - no
TrustedHostMiddlewareor equivalent host validation is applied - default bind is
0.0.0.0 - MCP has separate rebinding protection, showing the project already recognizes the threat model
In a live deployment, the expected verification is:
And if the operator exposes Glances without --password (supported and common), the attacker can read endpoints such as:
Even on password-enabled deployments, the missing host validation still leaves the REST/WebUI/token surface reachable through rebinding and increases the value of chains with other authenticated browser issues.
Impact
- Remote read of local/internal REST data: DNS rebinding can expose Glances instances that were intended to be reachable only from a local or internal network context.
- Bypass of origin-based browser isolation: Same-origin policy no longer protects the API once the browser accepts the attacker-controlled rebinding host as the origin.
- High-value chaining surface: This expands the exploitability of previously identified Glances issues involving permissive CORS, credential-bearing API responses, and state-changing authenticated endpoints.
- Token surface exposure: The JWT token route is mounted on the same host-unvalidated app and is therefore also reachable through the rebinding path.
Recommended Fix
Apply host allowlist enforcement to the main REST/WebUI FastAPI app, similar in spirit to the MCP hardening:
At minimum:
- reject requests whose
Hostheader does not match an explicit allowlist - do not rely on
0.0.0.0bind semantics as an access-control boundary - document that reverse-proxy deployments must set a strict host allowlist
References
glances/outputs/glances_mcp.pyglances/outputs/glances_restful_api.pyglances/main.py
Пакеты
Glances
< 4.5.2
4.5.2
Связанные уязвимости
Glances is an open-source system cross-platform monitoring tool. Glances recently added DNS rebinding protection for the MCP endpoint, but prior to version 4.5.2, the main REST/WebUI FastAPI application still accepts arbitrary `Host` headers and does not apply `TrustedHostMiddleware` or an equivalent host allowlist. As a result, the REST API, WebUI, and token endpoint remain reachable through attacker-controlled domains in classic DNS rebinding scenarios. Once the victim browser has rebound the attacker domain to the Glances service, same-origin policy no longer protects the API because the browser considers the rebinding domain to be the origin. This is a distinct issue from the previously reported default CORS weakness. CORS is not required for exploitation here because DNS rebinding causes the victim browser to treat the malicious domain as same-origin with the rebinding target. Version 4.5.2 contains a patch for the issue.
Glances is an open-source system cross-platform monitoring tool. Glances recently added DNS rebinding protection for the MCP endpoint, but prior to version 4.5.2, the main REST/WebUI FastAPI application still accepts arbitrary `Host` headers and does not apply `TrustedHostMiddleware` or an equivalent host allowlist. As a result, the REST API, WebUI, and token endpoint remain reachable through attacker-controlled domains in classic DNS rebinding scenarios. Once the victim browser has rebound the attacker domain to the Glances service, same-origin policy no longer protects the API because the browser considers the rebinding domain to be the origin. This is a distinct issue from the previously reported default CORS weakness. CORS is not required for exploitation here because DNS rebinding causes the victim browser to treat the malicious domain as same-origin with the rebinding target. Version 4.5.2 contains a patch for the issue.
Glances is an open-source system cross-platform monitoring tool. Glanc ...