CVE-2018-16202: Cordova plugin ionic webview Path Traversal Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-xwjh-cp99-cj8q
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CVSS 8.6
CWE-22
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2018-16202 is a HIGH (CVSS 8.6) path traversal vulnerability (CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')) affecting Cordova plugin ionic webview libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves path traversal in cordova-plugin-ionic-webview. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 2.2.0.

CVE-2018-16202 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2018-16202
GHSA Identifier GHSA-xwjh-cp99-cj8q
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 8.6
CWE Classification CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
Affected Product Cordova plugin ionic webview
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 8.6

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:C/C:H/I:N/A:N).

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

How to Fix CVE-2018-16202

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

cordova-plugin-ionic-webview fixed: 2.2.0 
npm install cordova-plugin-ionic-webview@2.2.0
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 cordova-plugin-ionic-webview

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2018-16202, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls cordova-plugin-ionic-webview

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Cordova plugin ionic webview in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 2.2.0), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls cordova-plugin-ionic-webview 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-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal'), where the product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory. In Cordova plugin ionic webview, 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

Versions of `cordova-plugin-ionic-webview` prior to 2.2.0 are vulnerable to Path Traversal, allowing attackers access to OS local files that should be inaccessible by third-party applications. The package launches a webserver listening on http://localhost:8080 without restricting access of the app itself, thus escaping the iOS application sandbox and accessing local files. ## Recommendation Upgrade to version 2.2.0

CVE-2018-16202 Affected Cordova plugin ionic webview Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
2.2.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
cordova-plugin-ionic-webview
npm/cordova-plugin-ionic-webview
npm
< 2.2.0
2.2.0

References

NVD — CVE-2018-16202 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-16202
GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-xwjh-cp99-cj8q
Cordova plugin ionic webview Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/ionic-team/cordova-plugin-ionic-webview
jvn.jp/en/jp/jvn69812763/i... WEB
https://jvn.jp/en/jp/JVN69812763/index.html
www.npmjs.com/advisories/746 WEB
https://www.npmjs.com/advisories/746
jvn.jp/en/jp/jvn60497148/i... WEB
http://jvn.jp/en/jp/JVN60497148/index.html

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2018-16202?
CVE-2018-16202 is a security vulnerability in Cordova plugin ionic webview involving Path Traversal in cordova-plugin-ionic-webview under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal').
Which Cordova plugin ionic webview versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 2.2.0 across affected packages: cordova-plugin-ionic-webview.
What version fixes CVE-2018-16202?
Upgrading to 2.2.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is cordova-plugin-ionic-webview affected?
Yes, cordova-plugin-ionic-webview is affected in releases prior to 2.2.0. Upgrade your dependency to 2.2.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2018-16202?
CVE-2018-16202 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.6 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2018-16202?
CVE-2018-16202 is classified under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') (The product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2018-16202?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls cordova-plugin-ionic-webview'. 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-xwjh-cp99-cj8q",
  "modified" : "2021-09-22T18:20:58Z",
  "published" : "2019-02-12T15:36:35Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2018-16202" ],
  "summary" : "Path Traversal in cordova-plugin-ionic-webview",
  "details" : "Versions of `cordova-plugin-ionic-webview` prior to 2.2.0 are vulnerable to Path Traversal, allowing attackers access to OS local files that should be inaccessible by third-party applications.  The package launches a webserver listening on http://localhost:8080 without restricting access of the app itself, thus escaping the iOS application sandbox and accessing local files.\n\n\n## Recommendation\n\nUpgrade to version 2.2.0",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "cordova-plugin-ionic-webview"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2.2.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-16202"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-xwjh-cp99-cj8q"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ionic-team/cordova-plugin-ionic-webview"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://jvn.jp/en/jp/JVN69812763/index.html"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.npmjs.com/advisories/746"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://jvn.jp/en/jp/JVN60497148/index.html"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-22" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2020-06-16T22:04:44Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}