CVE-2021-38384: Serverless offline Incorrect Authorization Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-h97f-5258-5593
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-863
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2021-38384 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) incorrect authorization vulnerability (CWE-863: Incorrect Authorization) affecting Serverless offline libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves incorrect authorization in serverless-offline. Remediation is available in the latest vendor maintenance releases.

CVE-2021-38384 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2021-38384
GHSA Identifier GHSA-h97f-5258-5593
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-863: Incorrect Authorization
Affected Product Serverless offline
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-2021-38384

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

serverless-offline fixed: Latest secure release 
npm install serverless-offline@Latest secure release
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 serverless-offline

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2021-38384, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls serverless-offline

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

Note: The npm ls serverless-offline 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-863: Incorrect Authorization, where the product performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action, but it does not correctly perform the check. In Serverless offline, 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

Serverless Offline 8.0.0 returns a 403 HTTP status code for a route that has a trailing `/` character, which might cause a developer to implement incorrect access control, because the actual behavior within the Amazon AWS environment is a 200 HTTP status code (i.e., possibly greater than expected permissions).

CVE-2021-38384 Affected Serverless offline Versions

1 component(s)
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
serverless-offline
npm/serverless-offline
npm
≤ 8.0.0

References

NVD — CVE-2021-38384 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-38384
Serverless offline Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/dherault/serverless-offline/issues/1259
Serverless offline Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/dherault/serverless-offline

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2021-38384?
CVE-2021-38384 is a security vulnerability in Serverless offline involving Incorrect Authorization in serverless-offline under CWE-863: Incorrect Authorization.
Which Serverless offline versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to current release patches across affected packages: serverless-offline.
What version fixes CVE-2021-38384?
Upgrading to current release patches (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is serverless-offline affected?
Yes, serverless-offline is affected in releases prior to Latest secure release. Upgrade your dependency to Latest secure release or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2021-38384?
CVE-2021-38384 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-2021-38384?
CVE-2021-38384 is classified under CWE-863: Incorrect Authorization (The product performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action, but it does not correctly perform the check.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2021-38384?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls serverless-offline'. 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-h97f-5258-5593",
  "modified" : "2023-09-05T23:13:23Z",
  "published" : "2021-09-01T18:32:22Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2021-38384" ],
  "summary" : "Incorrect Authorization in serverless-offline",
  "details" : "Serverless Offline 8.0.0 returns a 403 HTTP status code for a route that has a trailing `/` character, which might cause a developer to implement incorrect access control, because the actual behavior within the Amazon AWS environment is a 200 HTTP status code (i.e., possibly greater than expected permissions).",
  "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" : "serverless-offline"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "last_affected" : "8.0.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-38384"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/dherault/serverless-offline/issues/1259"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/dherault/serverless-offline"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-863" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2021-08-30T20:31:00Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2021-08-10T18:15:00Z"
  }
}