CVE-2021-25912: Dotty Prototype Pollution Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-f5c9-x9j6-87qp
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-400
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2021-25912 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) prototype pollution vulnerability (CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption) affecting Dotty libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves prototype pollution in dotty. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 0.1.1.

CVE-2021-25912 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2021-25912
GHSA Identifier GHSA-f5c9-x9j6-87qp
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption
Affected Product Dotty
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-2021-25912

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

dotty fixed: 0.1.1 
npm install dotty@0.1.1
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 dotty

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2021-25912, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls dotty

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Dotty in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 0.1.1), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls dotty 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-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption, where the product does not properly control the allocation and maintenance of a limited resource. In Dotty, 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

Prototype pollution vulnerability in 'dotty' before version 0.1.1 allows attackers to cause a denial of service and may lead to remote code execution.

CVE-2021-25912 Affected Dotty Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
0.1.1
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
dotty
npm/dotty
npm
< 0.1.1
0.1.1

References

NVD — CVE-2021-25912 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-25912
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/deoxxa/dotty/commit/cd997d37917186c131be71501a698803f2b7ebdb
www.npmjs.com/package/dotty WEB
https://www.npmjs.com/package/dotty
www.whitesourcesoftware.com/vulnerability-datab... WEB
https://www.whitesourcesoftware.com/vulnerability-database/CVE-2021-25912

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2021-25912?
CVE-2021-25912 is a security vulnerability in Dotty involving Prototype pollution in dotty under CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption.
Which Dotty versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 0.1.1 across affected packages: dotty.
What version fixes CVE-2021-25912?
Upgrading to 0.1.1 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is dotty affected?
Yes, dotty is affected in releases prior to 0.1.1. Upgrade your dependency to 0.1.1 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2021-25912?
CVE-2021-25912 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-2021-25912?
CVE-2021-25912 is classified under CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption (The product does not properly control the allocation and maintenance of a limited resource.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2021-25912?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls dotty'. 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-f5c9-x9j6-87qp",
  "modified" : "2023-08-08T19:28:24Z",
  "published" : "2021-02-05T20:43:08Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2021-25912" ],
  "summary" : "Prototype pollution in dotty",
  "details" : "Prototype pollution vulnerability in 'dotty' before version 0.1.1 allows attackers to cause a denial of service and may lead to remote code execution.",
  "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" : "dotty"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "0.1.1"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-25912"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/deoxxa/dotty/commit/cd997d37917186c131be71501a698803f2b7ebdb"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.npmjs.com/package/dotty"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.whitesourcesoftware.com/vulnerability-database/CVE-2021-25912"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-400" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2021-02-03T07:41:22Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2021-02-02T19:15:00Z"
  }
}