CVE-2022-31179: Shescape Shescape Prior To 1.5.8 Vulnerable Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-jjc5-fp7p-6f8w
CVSS 8.1
CWE-74
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2022-31179 is a HIGH (CVSS 8.1) shescape prior to 1.5.8 vulnerable vulnerability (CWE-74: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component ('Injection')) affecting Shescape libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves shescape prior to 1.5.8 vulnerable to insufficient escaping of line feeds for cmd. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.5.8.

CVE-2022-31179 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2022-31179
GHSA Identifier GHSA-jjc5-fp7p-6f8w
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 8.1
CWE Classification CWE-74: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component ('Injection')
Affected Product Shescape
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 8.1

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:H).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity High (AC:H)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Changed (S:C)
Confidentiality Low (C:L)
Integrity Low (I:L)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2022-31179

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

shescape fixed: 1.5.8
npm install shescape@1.5.8
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 shescape

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2022-31179, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls shescape

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Shescape in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.5.8), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls shescape 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-74: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component ('Injection'), where the product constructs all or part of a command, data structure, or record using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify how it is parsed or interpreted when it is sent to a downstream component. In Shescape, 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

### Impact This impacts users that use Shescape (any API function) to escape arguments for **cmd.exe** on **Windows**. An attacker can omit all arguments following their input by including a line feed character (`'\n'`) in the payload. Example: ```javascript import cp from "node:child_process"; import * as shescape from "shescape"; // 1. Prerequisites const options = { shell: "cmd.exe", }; // 2. Attack const payload = "attacker\n"; // 3. Usage let escapedPayload; escapedPayload = shescape.escape(payload, options); // Or escapedPayload = shescape.escapeAll([payload], options)[0]; // Or escapedPayload = shescape.quote(payload, options); // Or escapedPayload = shescape.quoteAll([payload], options)[0]; cp.execSync(`echo Hello ${escapedPayload}! How are you doing?`, options); // Outputs: "Hello attacker" ``` > **Note**: `execSync` is just illustrative here, all of `exec`, `execFile`, `execFileSync`, `fork`, `spawn`, and `spawnSync` can be attacked using a line feed character if CMD is the shell being used. ### Patches This bug has been patched in [v1.5.8] which you can upgrade to now. No further changes are required. ### Workarounds Alternatively, line feed characters (`'\n'`) can be stripped out manually or the user input can be made the last argument (this only limits the impact). ### References - https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/pull/332 - https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/releases/tag/v1.5.8 ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: - Comment on https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/pull/332 - Open an issue at https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/issues (_New issue_ > _Question_ > _Get started_) [v1.5.8]: https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/releases/tag/v1.5.8

CVE-2022-31179 Affected Shescape Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
1.5.8
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
shescape
npm
< 1.5.8
1.5.8

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2022-31179?
CVE-2022-31179 is a security vulnerability in Shescape involving Shescape prior to 1.5.8 vulnerable to insufficient escaping of line feeds for CMD under CWE-74: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component ('Injection').
Which Shescape versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 1.5.8 across affected packages: shescape.
What version fixes CVE-2022-31179?
Upgrading to 1.5.8 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is shescape affected?
Yes, shescape is affected in releases prior to 1.5.8. Upgrade your dependency to 1.5.8 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2022-31179?
CVE-2022-31179 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.1 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2022-31179?
CVE-2022-31179 is classified under CWE-74: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component ('Injection') (The product constructs all or part of a command, data structure, or record using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify how it is parsed or interpreted when it is sent to a downstream component.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2022-31179?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls shescape'. 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
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-jjc5-fp7p-6f8w",
  "modified" : "2022-08-11T18:42:41Z",
  "published" : "2022-07-15T21:39:14Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2022-31179" ],
  "summary" : "Shescape prior to 1.5.8 vulnerable to insufficient escaping of line feeds for CMD",
  "details" : "### Impact\n\nThis impacts users that use Shescape (any API function) to escape arguments for **cmd.exe** on **Windows**. An attacker can omit all arguments following their input by including a line feed character (`'\\n'`) in the payload. Example:\n\n```javascript\nimport cp from \"node:child_process\";\nimport * as shescape from \"shescape\";\n\n// 1. Prerequisites\nconst options = {\n  shell: \"cmd.exe\",\n};\n\n// 2. Attack\nconst payload = \"attacker\\n\";\n\n// 3. Usage\nlet escapedPayload;\nescapedPayload = shescape.escape(payload, options);\n// Or\nescapedPayload = shescape.escapeAll([payload], options)[0];\n// Or\nescapedPayload = shescape.quote(payload, options);\n// Or\nescapedPayload = shescape.quoteAll([payload], options)[0];\n\ncp.execSync(`echo Hello ${escapedPayload}! How are you doing?`, options);\n// Outputs:  \"Hello attacker\"\n```\n\n> **Note**: `execSync` is just illustrative here, all of `exec`, `execFile`, `execFileSync`, `fork`, `spawn`, and `spawnSync` can be attacked using a line feed character if CMD is the shell being used.\n\n### Patches\n\nThis bug has been patched in [v1.5.8] which you can upgrade to now. No further changes are required.\n\n### Workarounds\n\nAlternatively, line feed characters (`'\\n'`) can be stripped out manually or the user input can be made the last argument (this only limits the impact).\n\n### References\n\n- https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/pull/332\n- https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/releases/tag/v1.5.8\n\n### For more information\n\nIf you have any questions or comments about this advisory:\n\n- Comment on https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/pull/332\n- Open an issue at https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/issues (_New issue_ > _Question_ > _Get started_)\n\n[v1.5.8]: https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/releases/tag/v1.5.8\n",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "shescape"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.5.8"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/security/advisories/GHSA-jjc5-fp7p-6f8w"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-31179"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/pull/332"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/commit/aceea7358f7222984e21260381ebc5ec4543b76f"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ericcornelissen/shescape/releases/tag/v1.5.8"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-74" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2022-07-15T21:39:14Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2022-08-01T20:15:00Z"
  }
}