Confer object-derived file write only for files the object owner owns (#26032)

has_access_to_file() derives file access from the objects a file is attached to
(knowledge bases, workspace models). Those branches returned True for any access_type
whenever the user held that permission on the object, write/delete included. Since a
user can create their own KB or model and attach any file they can merely READ (KB
attach and the model meta.knowledge validator both gate on read access only), a user
with read access to a victim file could launder it into write/delete: attach it to an
object they own, then rename, overwrite or delete it via the write-gated file routes
(POST /files/{id}/rename, /data/content/update, DELETE /files/{id}). This is the
residual of GHSA-vjqm-6gcc-62cr (CVE-2026-54012) left open by the read-only attach
validator (CWE-863).

An object now confers write/delete on a file only when the object's owner owns that
file, so delegation originates from the file's own owner. Read is unchanged (RAG and
shared-object reads still work), and legitimate delegation is preserved: a write grant
on an object whose owner owns the attached file still confers write. Applied to all
three object branches: knowledge base, file home collection, and workspace model.

Co-authored-by: rexpository <30176934+rexpository@users.noreply.github.com>
Co-authored-by: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

backend/open_webui/utils/access_control/files.py

@@ -38,25 +38,33 @@ async def has_access_to_file(
     if file.user_id == user.id:
         return True
 
-    # Check if the file is associated with any knowledge bases the user has access to
+    # Check if the file is associated with any knowledge bases the user has access to.
+    # An object (knowledge base or workspace model) confers write/delete on a file only when
+    # the object's OWNER owns that file; otherwise a read-only file laundered into an object
+    # the user controls would gain write/delete on it (CWE-863). Read access is unaffected.
     knowledge_bases = await Knowledges.get_knowledges_by_file_id(file_id, db=db)
     user_group_ids = {group.id for group in await Groups.get_groups_by_member_id(user.id, db=db)}
     for knowledge_base in knowledge_bases:
-        if knowledge_base.user_id == user.id or await AccessGrants.has_access(
+        if (
-            user_id=user.id,
+            knowledge_base.user_id == user.id
-            resource_type='knowledge',
+            or await AccessGrants.has_access(
-            resource_id=knowledge_base.id,
+                user_id=user.id,
-            permission=access_type,
+                resource_type='knowledge',
-            user_group_ids=user_group_ids,
+                resource_id=knowledge_base.id,
-            db=db,
+                permission=access_type,
-        ):
+                user_group_ids=user_group_ids,
+                db=db,
+            )
+        ) and (access_type == 'read' or knowledge_base.user_id == file.user_id):
             return True
 
     knowledge_base_id = file.meta.get('collection_name') if file.meta else None
     if knowledge_base_id:
         knowledge_bases = await Knowledges.get_knowledge_bases_by_user_id(user.id, access_type, db=db)
         for knowledge_base in knowledge_bases:
-            if knowledge_base.id == knowledge_base_id:
+            if knowledge_base.id == knowledge_base_id and (
+                access_type == 'read' or knowledge_base.user_id == file.user_id
+            ):
                 return True
 
     # Check if the file is associated with any channels the user has access to
@@ -78,12 +86,14 @@ async def has_access_to_file(
         if accessible_ids:
             return True
 
-    # Check if the file is directly attached to a shared workspace model
+    # Check if the file is directly attached to a shared workspace model (per the ownership
+    # note above, model write is conferred only for files the model owner owns).
     for model in await Models.get_models_by_user_id(user.id, permission=access_type, db=db):
         knowledge_items = getattr(model.meta, 'knowledge', None) or []
         for item in knowledge_items:
             if isinstance(item, dict) and item.get('type') == 'file' and item.get('id') == file.id:
-                return True
+                if access_type == 'read' or model.user_id == file.user_id:
+                    return True
 
     return False