CVE-2017-16014: Http proxy Insufficient Error Handling Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-9xw9-pvgv-6p76
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CVSS 7.5
CWE-703
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2017-16014 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) insufficient error handling vulnerability (CWE-703: Improper Check or Handling of Exceptional Conditions) affecting Http proxy libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves insufficient error handling in http-proxy. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 0.7.0.

CVE-2017-16014 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2017-16014
GHSA Identifier GHSA-9xw9-pvgv-6p76
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-703: Improper Check or Handling of Exceptional Conditions
Affected Product Http proxy
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-2017-16014

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

http-proxy fixed: 0.7.0 
npm install http-proxy@0.7.0
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 http-proxy

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2017-16014, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls http-proxy

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Http proxy in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 0.7.0), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls http-proxy 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-703: Improper Check or Handling of Exceptional Conditions, where the product does not properly anticipate or handle exceptional conditions that rarely occur during normal operation of the product. In Http proxy, 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

Affected versions of `http-proxy` are vulnerable to a denial of service attack, wherein an attacker can force an error which will cause the server to crash. ## Recommendation Update to version 0.7.0 or later.

CVE-2017-16014 Affected Http proxy Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
0.7.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
http-proxy
npm/http-proxy
npm
< 0.7.0
0.7.0

References

NVD — CVE-2017-16014 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-16014
Http proxy Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/nodejitsu/node-http-proxy/pull/101
GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-9xw9-pvgv-6p76
www.npmjs.com/advisories/323 WEB
https://www.npmjs.com/advisories/323

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2017-16014?
CVE-2017-16014 is a security vulnerability in Http proxy involving Insufficient Error Handling in http-proxy under CWE-703: Improper Check or Handling of Exceptional Conditions.
Which Http proxy versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 0.7.0 across affected packages: http-proxy.
What version fixes CVE-2017-16014?
Upgrading to 0.7.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is http-proxy affected?
Yes, http-proxy is affected in releases prior to 0.7.0. Upgrade your dependency to 0.7.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2017-16014?
CVE-2017-16014 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-2017-16014?
CVE-2017-16014 is classified under CWE-703: Improper Check or Handling of Exceptional Conditions (The product does not properly anticipate or handle exceptional conditions that rarely occur during normal operation of the product.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2017-16014?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls http-proxy'. 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-9xw9-pvgv-6p76",
  "modified" : "2023-09-13T19:36:45Z",
  "published" : "2018-11-09T17:47:52Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2017-16014" ],
  "summary" : "Insufficient Error Handling in http-proxy",
  "details" : "Affected versions of `http-proxy` are vulnerable to a denial of service attack, wherein an attacker can force an error which will cause the server to crash.\n\n\n## Recommendation\n\nUpdate to version 0.7.0 or later.",
  "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" : "http-proxy"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "0.7.0"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 0.6.6"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-16014"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/nodejitsu/node-http-proxy/pull/101"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-9xw9-pvgv-6p76"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.npmjs.com/advisories/323"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-703" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2020-06-16T21:29:54Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}