CVE-2022-25231: Node opcua Denial of Service Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-qpgc-xh7j-52q8
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CVSS 7.5
CWE-770
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2022-25231 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) denial of service vulnerability (CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling) affecting Node opcua libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves node-opcua dos vulnerability via message with memory allocation that exceeds v8's memory limit. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 2.74.0.

CVE-2022-25231 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2022-25231
GHSA Identifier GHSA-qpgc-xh7j-52q8
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling
Affected Product Node opcua
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.5

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:N/I:N/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 None (C:N)
Integrity None (I:N)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2022-25231

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

node-opcua fixed: 2.74.0 
npm install node-opcua@2.74.0
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 node-opcua

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2022-25231, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls node-opcua

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Node opcua in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 2.74.0), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls node-opcua 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-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling, where the product allocates a reusable resource or group of resources on behalf of an actor without imposing any intended restrictions on the size or number of resources that can be allocated. In Node opcua, 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

The package node-opcua before 2.74.0 are vulnerable to Denial of Service (DoS) by sending a specifically crafted OPC UA message with a special OPC UA NodeID, when the requested memory allocation exceeds the v8’s memory limit.

CVE-2022-25231 Affected Node opcua Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
2.74.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
node-opcua
npm/node-opcua
npm
< 2.74.0
2.74.0

References

NVD — CVE-2022-25231 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-25231
Node opcua Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/node-opcua/node-opcua/pull/1182
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/node-opcua/node-opcua/commit/7b5044b3f5866fbedc3efabd05e407352c07bd2f
Node opcua Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/node-opcua/node-opcua
Node opcua Security Information SECURITY
https://security.snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-JS-NODEOPCUA-2988724

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2022-25231?
CVE-2022-25231 is a security vulnerability in Node opcua involving node-opcua DoS vulnerability via message with memory allocation that exceeds v8's memory limit under CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling.
Which Node opcua versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 2.74.0 across affected packages: node-opcua.
What version fixes CVE-2022-25231?
Upgrading to 2.74.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is node-opcua affected?
Yes, node-opcua is affected in releases prior to 2.74.0. Upgrade your dependency to 2.74.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2022-25231?
CVE-2022-25231 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2022-25231?
CVE-2022-25231 is classified under CWE-770: Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling (The product allocates a reusable resource or group of resources on behalf of an actor without imposing any intended restrictions on the size or number of resources that can be allocated.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2022-25231?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls node-opcua'. 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-qpgc-xh7j-52q8",
  "modified" : "2022-09-01T22:19:48Z",
  "published" : "2022-08-24T00:00:31Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2022-25231" ],
  "summary" : "node-opcua DoS vulnerability via message with memory allocation that exceeds v8's memory limit",
  "details" : "The package node-opcua before 2.74.0 are vulnerable to Denial of Service (DoS) by sending a specifically crafted OPC UA message with a special OPC UA NodeID, when the requested memory allocation exceeds the v8’s memory limit.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "node-opcua"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2.74.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-25231"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/node-opcua/node-opcua/pull/1182"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/node-opcua/node-opcua/commit/7b5044b3f5866fbedc3efabd05e407352c07bd2f"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/node-opcua/node-opcua"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://security.snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-JS-NODEOPCUA-2988724"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-770" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2022-09-01T22:19:48Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2022-08-23T05:15:00Z"
  }
}