In Git before 2.13.7, 2.14.x before 2.14.4, 2.15.x before 2.15.2, 2.16.x before 2.16.4, and 2.17.x before 2.17.1, remote code execution can occur. With a crafted .gitmodules file, a malicious project can execute an arbitrary script on a machine that runs "git clone --recurse-submodules" because submodule "names" are obtained from this file, and then appended to $GIT_DIR/modules, leading to directory traversal with "../" in a name. Finally, post-checkout hooks from a submodule are executed, bypassing the intended design in which hooks are not obtained from a remote server.

In Git for windows through 2.34.1 when using git pull to update the local warehouse, git.cmd can be run directly.

Git for Windows is a fork of Git that contains Windows-specific patches. This vulnerability in versions prior to 2.37.1 lets Git for Windows' installer execute a binary into `C:\mingw64\bin\git.exe` by mistake. This only happens upon a fresh install, not when upgrading Git for Windows. A patch is included in version 2.37.1. Two workarounds are available. Create the `C:\mingw64` folder and remove read/write access from this folder, or disallow arbitrary authenticated users to create folders in `C:\`.