CVE-2020-36618: Whois FurqanSoftware/node-whois Vulnerable To Prototype Pollution Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-97jv-c342-5xhc
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-1321 CWE-94 CWE-74
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-36618 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) furqansoftware/node-whois vulnerable to prototype pollution vulnerability (CWE-1321: Improperly Controlled Modification of Object Prototype Attributes ('Prototype Pollution')) affecting Whois libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves furqansoftware/node-whois vulnerable to prototype pollution. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 2.13.6.

CVE-2020-36618 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-36618
GHSA Identifier GHSA-97jv-c342-5xhc
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-1321: Improperly Controlled Modification of Object Prototype Attributes ('Prototype Pollution')
Affected Product Whois
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-2020-36618

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

whois fixed: 2.13.6 
npm install whois@2.13.6
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 whois

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2020-36618, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls whois

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Whois in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 2.13.6), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls whois 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 Whois, 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

A vulnerability classified as critical has been found in Furqan node-whois. Affected is an unknown function of the file `index.coffee`. The manipulation leads to improperly controlled modification of object prototype attributes ('prototype pollution'). It is possible to launch the attack remotely. The name of the patch is 46ccc2aee8d063c7b6b4dee2c2834113b7286076. It is recommended to apply a patch to fix this issue. The identifier of this vulnerability is VDB-216252.

CVE-2020-36618 Affected Whois Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
2.13.6
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
whois
npm/whois
npm
< 2.13.6
2.13.6

References

NVD — CVE-2020-36618 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-36618
Whois Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/FurqanSoftware/node-whois/pull/105
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/FurqanSoftware/node-whois/commit/46ccc2aee8d063c7b6b4dee2c2834113b7286076
Whois Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/FurqanSoftware/node-whois
vuldb.com/ WEB
https://vuldb.com/?id.216252
web.archive.org/web/20220403104013/... WEB
https://web.archive.org/web/20220403104013/https://www.npmjs.com/package/whois

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-36618?
CVE-2020-36618 is a security vulnerability in Whois involving FurqanSoftware/node-whois vulnerable to Prototype Pollution under CWE-1321: Improperly Controlled Modification of Object Prototype Attributes ('Prototype Pollution').
Which Whois versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 2.13.6 across affected packages: whois.
What version fixes CVE-2020-36618?
Upgrading to 2.13.6 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is whois affected?
Yes, whois is affected in releases prior to 2.13.6. Upgrade your dependency to 2.13.6 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-36618?
CVE-2020-36618 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-2020-36618?
CVE-2020-36618 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-2020-36618?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls whois'. 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-97jv-c342-5xhc",
  "modified" : "2022-12-29T23:37:10Z",
  "published" : "2022-12-19T15:30:29Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-36618" ],
  "summary" : "FurqanSoftware/node-whois vulnerable to Prototype Pollution",
  "details" : "A vulnerability classified as critical has been found in Furqan node-whois. Affected is an unknown function of the file `index.coffee`. The manipulation leads to improperly controlled modification of object prototype attributes ('prototype pollution'). It is possible to launch the attack remotely. The name of the patch is 46ccc2aee8d063c7b6b4dee2c2834113b7286076. It is recommended to apply a patch to fix this issue. The identifier of this vulnerability is VDB-216252.",
  "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" : "whois"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2.13.6"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-36618"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/FurqanSoftware/node-whois/pull/105"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/FurqanSoftware/node-whois/commit/46ccc2aee8d063c7b6b4dee2c2834113b7286076"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/FurqanSoftware/node-whois"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://vuldb.com/?id.216252"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://web.archive.org/web/20220403104013/https://www.npmjs.com/package/whois"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-1321", "CWE-74", "CWE-94" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2022-12-19T18:24:03Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2022-12-19T14:15:00Z"
  }
}