CVE-2020-7720: Node forge Prototype Pollution Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-92xj-mqp7-vmcj
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-1321 CWE-915
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-7720 is a HIGH (CVSS 9.8) prototype pollution vulnerability (CWE-1321: Improperly Controlled Modification of Object Prototype Attributes ('Prototype Pollution')) affecting Node forge libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves prototype pollution in node-forge. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 0.10.0.

CVE-2020-7720 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-7720
GHSA Identifier GHSA-92xj-mqp7-vmcj
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-1321: Improperly Controlled Modification of Object Prototype Attributes ('Prototype Pollution')
Affected Product Node forge
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/E:P/RL:O/RC:C).

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-2020-7720

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

node-forge fixed: 0.10.0 
npm install node-forge@0.10.0
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 node-forge

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2020-7720, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls node-forge

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Node forge in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 0.10.0), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls node-forge 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-1321: Improperly Controlled Modification of Object Prototype Attributes ('Prototype Pollution'), where the product receives input from an upstream component that specifies attributes that are to be initialized or updated in an object, but it does not properly control modifications of attributes of the object prototype. In Node forge, 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

The package node-forge before 0.10.0 is vulnerable to Prototype Pollution via the util.setPath function. Note: version 0.10.0 is a breaking change removing the vulnerable functions.

CVE-2020-7720 Affected Node forge Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
0.10.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
node-forge
npm/node-forge
npm
< 0.10.0
0.10.0

References

NVD — CVE-2020-7720 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-7720
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/digitalbazaar/forge/commit/6a1e3ef74f6eb345bcff1b82184201d1e28b6756
Node forge Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/digitalbazaar/forge
Node forge Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/digitalbazaar/forge/blob/master/CHANGELOG.md
Node forge Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/digitalbazaar/forge/blob/master/CHANGELOG.md#removed
snyk.io/vuln/snyk-java-orgw... WEB
https://snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-JAVA-ORGWEBJARSNPM-609293
snyk.io/vuln/snyk-js-nodefo... WEB
https://snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-JS-NODEFORGE-598677

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-7720?
CVE-2020-7720 is a security vulnerability in Node forge involving Prototype Pollution in node-forge under CWE-1321: Improperly Controlled Modification of Object Prototype Attributes ('Prototype Pollution').
Which Node forge versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 0.10.0 across affected packages: node-forge.
What version fixes CVE-2020-7720?
Upgrading to 0.10.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is node-forge affected?
Yes, node-forge is affected in releases prior to 0.10.0. Upgrade your dependency to 0.10.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-7720?
CVE-2020-7720 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:P/RL:O/RC:C.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2020-7720?
CVE-2020-7720 is classified under CWE-1321: Improperly Controlled Modification of Object Prototype Attributes ('Prototype Pollution') (The product receives input from an upstream component that specifies attributes that are to be initialized or updated in an object, but it does not properly control modifications of attributes of the object prototype.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2020-7720?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls node-forge'. 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-92xj-mqp7-vmcj",
  "modified" : "2022-12-03T04:06:21Z",
  "published" : "2020-09-14T21:42:09Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-7720" ],
  "summary" : "Prototype Pollution in node-forge",
  "details" : "The package node-forge before 0.10.0 is vulnerable to Prototype Pollution via the util.setPath function. Note: version 0.10.0 is a breaking change removing the vulnerable functions.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:P/RL:O/RC:C"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "node-forge"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "0.10.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-7720"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/digitalbazaar/forge/commit/6a1e3ef74f6eb345bcff1b82184201d1e28b6756"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/digitalbazaar/forge"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/digitalbazaar/forge/blob/master/CHANGELOG.md"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/digitalbazaar/forge/blob/master/CHANGELOG.md#removed"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-JAVA-ORGWEBJARSNPM-609293"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-JS-NODEFORGE-598677"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-1321", "CWE-915" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2020-09-14T21:41:51Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2020-09-01T10:15:00Z"
  }
}