CVE-2018-3746: Pdfinfojs Command Injection Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-3pxp-6963-46r9
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-78 CWE-77
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2018-3746 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) command injection vulnerability (CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')) affecting Pdfinfojs libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves command injection in pdfinfojs. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 0.4.1.

CVE-2018-3746 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2018-3746
GHSA Identifier GHSA-3pxp-6963-46r9
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')
Affected Product Pdfinfojs
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 9.8

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2018-3746

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Pdfinfojs dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

pdfinfojs fixed: 0.4.1 
npm install pdfinfojs@0.4.1
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

npm ls pdfinfojs

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2018-3746, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls pdfinfojs

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Pdfinfojs in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 0.4.1), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls pdfinfojs command inspects dependencies declared in your package.json and lockfile; it does not perform automated runtime dynamic scanning.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection'), where the product constructs all or part of an os command using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the intended os command when it is sent to a downstream component. In Pdfinfojs, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

Versions of `pdfinfojs` before 0.4.1 are vulnerable to command injection. This is exploitable if an attacker can control the filename parameter that is passed into the `pdfinfojs` constructor. ## Recommendation Update to version 0.4.1 or later.

CVE-2018-3746 Affected Pdfinfojs Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
0.4.1
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
pdfinfojs
npm/pdfinfojs
npm
< 0.4.1
0.4.1

References

NVD — CVE-2018-3746 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-3746
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/fagbokforlaget/pdfinfojs/commit/5cc59cd8aa13ca8d16bb41da8affdfef370ad4fd
hackerone.com/reports/330957 WEB
https://hackerone.com/reports/330957
GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-3pxp-6963-46r9
www.npmjs.com/advisories/643 WEB
https://www.npmjs.com/advisories/643

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2018-3746?
CVE-2018-3746 is a security vulnerability in Pdfinfojs involving Command Injection in pdfinfojs under CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection').
Which Pdfinfojs versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 0.4.1 across affected packages: pdfinfojs.
What version fixes CVE-2018-3746?
Upgrading to 0.4.1 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is pdfinfojs affected?
Yes, pdfinfojs is affected in releases prior to 0.4.1. Upgrade your dependency to 0.4.1 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2018-3746?
CVE-2018-3746 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (CRITICAL) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2018-3746?
CVE-2018-3746 is classified under CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection') (The product constructs all or part of an OS command using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the intended OS command when it is sent to a downstream component.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2018-3746?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls pdfinfojs'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-3pxp-6963-46r9",
  "modified" : "2023-01-31T01:38:38Z",
  "published" : "2018-06-07T19:43:00Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2018-3746" ],
  "summary" : "Command Injection in pdfinfojs",
  "details" : "Versions of `pdfinfojs` before 0.4.1 are vulnerable to command injection. This is exploitable if an attacker can control the filename parameter that is passed into the `pdfinfojs` constructor.\n\n\n## Recommendation\n\nUpdate to version 0.4.1 or later.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "pdfinfojs"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "0.4.1"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-3746"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/fagbokforlaget/pdfinfojs/commit/5cc59cd8aa13ca8d16bb41da8affdfef370ad4fd"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://hackerone.com/reports/330957"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-3pxp-6963-46r9"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.npmjs.com/advisories/643"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-77", "CWE-78" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2020-06-16T20:55:51Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2018-06-01T17:29:00Z"
  }
}