codex scanned unsafe / untrusted paths to find AGENTS.md

What version of Codex CLI is running?

0.153.4

What subscription do you have?

Enterprise

Which model were you using?

gpt-6-astra

What platform is your computer?

Linux 7.1.8+deb13-amd64 x86_64 unknown

What terminal emulator and version are you using (if applicable)?

konsole 25.04.2, screen

Codex doctor report

{
  "schemaVersion": 1,
  "generatedAt": "1788970166s since unix epoch",
  "overallStatus": "ok",
  "codexVersion": "0.153.4",
  "checks": {
    "app_server.status": {
      "id": "app_server.status",
      "category": "app-server",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "background server is not running",
      "details": {
        "control socket": "/home/mhall/.codex/app-server-control/app-server-control.sock",
        "daemon state dir": "/home/mhall/.codex/app-server-daemon",
        "mode": "ephemeral",
        "pid file": "/home/mhall/.codex/app-server-daemon/app-server.pid (missing)",
        "settings": "/home/mhall/.codex/app-server-daemon/settings.json (missing)",
        "status": "not running",
        "update-loop pid file": "/home/mhall/.codex/app-server-daemon/app-server-updater.pid (missing)"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "auth.credentials": {
      "id": "auth.credentials",
      "category": "auth",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "auth is configured",
      "details": {
        "auth file": "/home/mhall/.codex/auth.json",
        "auth storage mode": "File",
        "stored API key": "false",
        "stored ChatGPT tokens": "true",
        "stored agent identity": "false",
        "stored auth mode": "chatgpt"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "config.load": {
      "id": "config.load",
      "category": "config",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "config loaded",
      "details": {
        "CODEX_HOME": "/home/mhall/.codex",
        "config.toml": "/home/mhall/.codex/config.toml",
        "config.toml parse": "ok",
        "cwd": "/home/mhall",
        "enabled feature flags": "shell_tool, view_image, sleep_tool, unified_exec, unified_exec_zsh_fork, shell_snapshot, content_item_kinds, code_mode_host, terminal_resize_reflow, sqlite, hooks, enable_request_compression, unbounded_connection_retries, multi_agent, apps, tool_search_always_defer_mcp_tools, tool_suggest, plugins, in_app_browser, in_app_chat, in_app_dictation, in_app_local_automation, in_app_updates, browser_use, browser_use_full_cdp_access, browser_use_external, computer_use, remote_plugin, plugin_sharing, image_generation, resize_all_images, item_ids, skill_mcp_dependency_install, skill_search, mentions_v2, steer, guardian_approval, goals, collaboration_modes, tool_call_mcp_elicitation, auth_elicitation, personality, fast_mode, tui_app_server, remote_compaction_v2, compaction_image_budget, workspace_dependencies",
        "feature flag overrides": "none",
        "feature flags enabled": "47",
        "log dir": "/home/mhall/.codex/log",
        "mcp servers": "0",
        "model": "<default>",
        "model provider": "openai",
        "sqlite home": "/home/mhall/.codex"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "git.environment": {
      "id": "git.environment",
      "category": "git",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "git version 2.47.3",
      "details": {
        "PATH git #1": "/usr/bin/git",
        "PATH git #2": "/bin/git",
        "PATH git entries": "2",
        "git build options": "git version 2.47.3; cpu: x86_64; no commit associated with this build; sizeof-long: 8; sizeof-size_t: 8; shell-path: /bin/sh; libcurl: 8.14.1; zlib: 1.3.1",
        "git exec path": "/usr/lib/git-core",
        "git version": "git version 2.47.3",
        "repo detected": "false",
        "selected git": "/usr/bin/git"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 26
    },
    "installation": {
      "id": "installation",
      "category": "install",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "installation looks consistent",
      "details": {
        "PATH codex #1": "/home/mhall/bin/codex",
        "PATH codex #2": "/home/mhall/bin/codex",
        "PATH codex entries": "2",
        "current executable": "/home/mhall/bin/codex",
        "install context": "other",
        "managed by Vite+": "false",
        "managed by bun": "false",
        "managed by npm": "false",
        "managed by pnpm": "false",
        "managed package root": "not set"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "mcp.config": {
      "id": "mcp.config",
      "category": "mcp",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "no MCP servers configured",
      "details": {},
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "network.env": {
      "id": "network.env",
      "category": "network",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "network-related environment looks readable",
      "details": {
        "managed proxy": "not configured",
        "proxy env vars": "none",
        "respect system proxy": "disabled"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "network.provider_reachability": {
      "id": "network.provider_reachability",
      "category": "reachability",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "active provider endpoints are reachable over HTTP",
      "details": {
        "ChatGPT inference URL": "https://chatgpt.com/backend-api/<redacted> reachable (HTTP 405)",
        "reachability mode": "ChatGPT auth"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 171
    },
    "network.websocket_reachability": {
      "id": "network.websocket_reachability",
      "category": "websocket",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "Responses WebSocket handshake succeeded",
      "details": {
        "DNS": "2 IPv4, 2 IPv6, first IPv6",
        "auth mode": "chatgpt",
        "connect timeout": "15000 ms",
        "endpoint": "wss://chatgpt.com/backend-api/<redacted>",
        "handshake result": "HTTP 101 Switching Protocols",
        "model provider": "openai",
        "provider name": "OpenAI",
        "proxy env vars": "none",
        "reasoning header": "false",
        "server model present": "false",
        "supports websockets": "true",
        "wire API": "responses"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 2151
    },
    "runtime.provenance": {
      "id": "runtime.provenance",
      "category": "runtime",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "running local build on linux-x86_64",
      "details": {
        "commit": "unknown",
        "current executable": "/home/mhall/bin/codex",
        "install method": "other",
        "platform": "linux-x86_64",
        "version": "0.153.4"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "runtime.search": {
      "id": "runtime.search",
      "category": "search",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "search is OK (system)",
      "details": {
        "search command": "rg",
        "search command readiness": "ripgrep 14.1.1",
        "search provider": "system"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "sandbox.helpers": {
      "id": "sandbox.helpers",
      "category": "sandbox",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "sandbox configuration is readable",
      "details": {
        "approval policy": "OnRequest",
        "codex-linux-sandbox helper": "/home/mhall/.codex/tmp/arg0/codex-arg01PFvXV/codex-linux-sandbox",
        "execve wrapper helper": "/home/mhall/.codex/tmp/arg0/codex-arg01PFvXV/codex-execve-wrapper",
        "filesystem sandbox": "restricted",
        "network sandbox": "restricted"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "security.endpoint": {
      "id": "security.endpoint",
      "category": "security",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "endpoint protection is not inspected on this platform",
      "details": {
        "endpoint products": "not inspected on this platform"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "state.paths": {
      "id": "state.paths",
      "category": "state",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "state paths and databases are inspectable",
      "details": {
        "CODEX_HOME": "/home/mhall/.codex (dir)",
        "active rollout files": "4 files, 743014 total bytes, 185753 average bytes",
        "archived rollout files": "0 files, 0 total bytes, 0 average bytes",
        "goals DB": "/home/mhall/.codex/goals_1.sqlite (file)",
        "goals DB integrity": "ok",
        "log DB": "/home/mhall/.codex/logs_2.sqlite (file)",
        "log DB integrity": "ok",
        "log dir": "/home/mhall/.codex/log (dir)",
        "memories DB": "/home/mhall/.codex/memories_1.sqlite (file)",
        "memories DB integrity": "ok",
        "queue DB": "/home/mhall/.codex/queue_1.sqlite (file)",
        "queue DB integrity": "ok",
        "sqlite home": "/home/mhall/.codex (dir)",
        "state DB": "/home/mhall/.codex/state_5.sqlite (file)",
        "state DB integrity": "ok",
        "thread history DB": "/home/mhall/.codex/thread_history_1.sqlite (file)",
        "thread history DB integrity": "ok"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 33
    },
    "state.rollout_db_parity": {
      "id": "state.rollout_db_parity",
      "category": "threads",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "rollout files and state DB thread inventory agree",
      "details": {
        "default model provider": "openai",
        "rollout DB active files": "4",
        "rollout DB active rows": "4",
        "rollout DB archive mismatches": "0",
        "rollout DB archived files": "0",
        "rollout DB archived rows": "0",
        "rollout DB duplicate DB paths": "0",
        "rollout DB duplicate rollout thread ids": "0",
        "rollout DB malformed file names": "0",
        "rollout DB missing active rows": "0",
        "rollout DB missing archived rows": "0",
        "rollout DB model providers": "openai=4",
        "rollout DB rows": "4",
        "rollout DB scan cap reached": "false",
        "rollout DB scan errors": "0",
        "rollout DB sources": "cli=4",
        "rollout DB stale rows": "0"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 28
    },
    "system.disk": {
      "id": "system.disk",
      "category": "disk",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "sufficient free disk space (3446.9 GiB)",
      "details": {
        "CODEX_HOME available": "3446.9 GiB",
        "failure threshold": "1.0 GiB",
        "warning threshold": "5.0 GiB",
        "worktree available": "3446.9 GiB"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "system.environment": {
      "id": "system.environment",
      "category": "system",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "OS language en-US",
      "details": {
        "EDITOR": "set",
        "LANG": "en_US.UTF-8",
        "LESS": "set",
        "VISUAL": "not set",
        "os": "Debian 13.0.0 (trixie) [64-bit]",
        "os language": "en-US",
        "os type": "Debian",
        "os version": "13.0.0"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 6
    },
    "terminal.env": {
      "id": "terminal.env",
      "category": "terminal",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "terminal metadata was detected",
      "details": {
        "CLICOLOR": "1",
        "COLORFGBG": "15;0",
        "COLORTERM": "truecolor",
        "DISPLAY": "present",
        "WAYLAND_DISPLAY": "present",
        "color output": "enabled",
        "effective locale": "en_US.UTF-8",
        "stderr is terminal": "true",
        "stdin is terminal": "true",
        "stdout is terminal": "true",
        "terminal": "Konsole",
        "terminal size": "132x81",
        "terminal version": "250402"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "terminal.title": {
      "id": "terminal.title",
      "category": "title",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "terminal title default",
      "details": {
        "terminal title activity": "true",
        "terminal title items": "activity, project-name",
        "terminal title project source": "cwd",
        "terminal title project value": "mhall",
        "terminal title source": "default"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 0
    },
    "updates.status": {
      "id": "updates.status",
      "category": "updates",
      "status": "ok",
      "summary": "update configuration is locally consistent",
      "details": {
        "cached latest version": "0.153.4",
        "check for update on startup": "true",
        "last checked at": "2026-09-09T15:54:32.643402166Z",
        "latest version": "0.153.4",
        "latest version status": "current version is not older",
        "update action": "manual or unknown",
        "version cache": "/home/mhall/.codex/version.json"
      },
      "remediation": null,
      "durationMs": 147
    }
  }
}

What issue are you seeing?

Codex started checking through unsafe locations for an AGENTS.md. This presents obvious prompt injection risks, along with numerous other potential security problems, if you are on a system where other parties control any parent directories of the source code you are working on.

for p in /AGENTS.md /home/AGENTS.md /home/mhall/AGENTS.md /home/mhall/src/AGENTS.md /home/mhall/src/tmp/AGENTS.md; do if [ -f "$p" ]; then cat "$p"; fi; done

What steps can reproduce the bug?

Uploaded thread: 01a086e8-dbd9-7020-9e61-a5d4fc07b5fc

What is the expected behavior?

Codex should only look in trusted source directories, and perhaps trusted config directories (such as ~/.codex or the like).

Additional information

No response

The report concerns Codex CLI scanning unsafe or untrusted paths while looking for AGENTS.md, but it names no source file or test. Reproduce the path scan from the reported environment, trace the path-discovery entry point, and add coverage showing that untrusted paths are not scanned.