Arbitrary File Overwrite in npm CLI (npm cli)
At a glance
- Source
- NVD
- EPSS
- EPSS 2.13 % · percentile 82 ()
- State
- PUBLISHED
- Published
- Updated
- Assigner
- GitHub_M
- NVD status
- Modified
Description
Versions of the npm CLI prior to 6.13.4 are vulnerable to an Arbitrary File Overwrite. It fails to prevent existing globally-installed binaries to be overwritten by other package installations. For example, if a package was installed globally and created a serve binary, any subsequent installs of packages that also create a serve binary would overwrite the previous serve binary. This behavior is still allowed in local installations and also through install scripts. This vulnerability bypasses a user using the --ignore-scripts install option.
Weaknesses (CWE)
- CWE-22 — Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory
- CWE-269 — Improper Privilege Management
References
- https://blog.npmjs.org/post/189618601100/binary-planting-with-the-npm-cli
- https://github.com/npm/cli/security/advisories/GHSA-4328-8hgf-7wjr
- https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpujan2020.html
- http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-01/msg00027.html
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/Z36UKPO5F3PQ3Q2POMF5LEKXWAH5RUFP/
- https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHEA-2020:0330
- https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2020:0573
- https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2020:0579
- https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2020:0597
- https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2020:0602
- https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202003-48
Scores
| Version | Score | Vector | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | HIGH 7.7 | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N | GitHub_M |
| CVSS 3.1 | HIGH 7.7 | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N | NVD · security-advisories@github.com (Secondary) |
| CVSS 3.1 | MEDIUM 6.5 | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N | NVD · nvd@nist.gov (Primary) |
| CVSS 2.0 | MEDIUM 5.5 | AV:N/AC:L/Au:S/C:N/I:P/A:P | NVD · nvd@nist.gov (Primary) |
Advisories
- GHSA-4328-8hgf-7wjr — npm Vulnerable to Global node_modules Binary Overwrite
European references
- ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2019-0774
- GCVE · GCVE-0-2019-16777
CERT-FR advisories
- CERTFR-2025-AVI-0969 — Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits VMware · cert.ssi.gouv.fr
- CERTFR-2024-AVI-0575 — Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits Juniper Networks · cert.ssi.gouv.fr
Affected configurations (NVD CPE)
cpe:2.3:a:npmjs:npm:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*< 6.13.4cpe:2.3:o:opensuse:leap:15.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*cpe:2.3:a:oracle:graalvm:19.3.0.2:*:*:*:enterprise:*:*:*cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:31:*:*:*:*:*:*:*cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_eus:8.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
Affected products
| Product | Versions |
|---|---|
| npm · cli | affected < 6.13.4 < 6.13.4 |
Sources
| Source | Licence |
|---|---|
| CVE List (CVEProject cvelistV5) | CVE Program Terms of Use |
| EPSS (FIRST.org) | FIRST — attribution requested |
| ENISA EUVD | ENISA — reproduction authorised, source acknowledged |
| CERT-FR (ANSSI) | Licence Ouverte / Etalab 2.0 |
| NVD (NIST) via fkie-cad/nvd-json-data-feeds | Public domain — this product uses data from the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD |