CVE-2026-22253 is a medium-severity authorization bypass vulnerability identified in charmbracelet's Soft Serve, a self-hosted Git server primarily used via command line. The flaw exists in versions prior to 0.11.2 within the Large File Storage (LFS) lock deletion endpoint. Specifically, when an authenticated user with write permissions attempts to delete an LFS lock, the server processes requests with the 'force' flag before verifying the user's ownership of the lock. This sequence allows such users to delete locks owned by other users, bypassing intended authorization controls. The vulnerability stems from incorrect authorization logic (CWE-863), where the force deletion path does not properly validate user context before proceeding. While confidentiality is unaffected, the integrity and availability of repository locks can be compromised, potentially disrupting collaborative workflows or enabling denial of service on repository resources. Exploitation requires authenticated write access to the repository but no additional user interaction. The vulnerability was publicly disclosed on January 8, 2026, with no known exploits in the wild at the time of publication. The issue has been addressed in Soft Serve version 0.11.2, which corrects the authorization sequence to ensure ownership validation precedes any forced deletion operation.

For European organizations utilizing Soft Serve for Git repository management, this vulnerability poses a risk to the integrity and availability of repository locks, which are critical for coordinating concurrent file edits in large file storage scenarios. Unauthorized deletion of LFS locks by users with write access can lead to conflicts, data corruption, or workflow disruptions, potentially delaying development cycles or causing accidental overwrites. While the breach does not expose confidential data, the disruption to development processes can have operational and reputational consequences, especially for organizations relying on strict version control and collaboration protocols. The requirement for authenticated write access limits the attack surface to internal or trusted users, but insider threats or compromised credentials could be leveraged to exploit this vulnerability. Given the increasing adoption of self-hosted Git solutions in European tech sectors, failure to patch could impact software development integrity and availability.

European organizations should immediately upgrade all Soft Serve instances to version 0.11.2 or later, where the authorization bypass has been fixed. Until upgrades are completed, organizations should restrict repository write access to trusted users only and monitor LFS lock deletion activities for anomalies, such as unexpected forced deletions. Implementing enhanced logging and alerting on repository lock operations can help detect potential exploitation attempts. Additionally, organizations should enforce strong authentication mechanisms and credential hygiene to reduce the risk of compromised accounts being used to exploit this vulnerability. Regular audits of repository permissions and user roles will further minimize exposure. Where feasible, consider isolating critical repositories or employing additional access controls to limit the impact of potential misuse of write privileges.