CVE-2020-7789: Node notifier OS Command Injection Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-5fw9-fq32-wv5p
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CVSS 5.6
CWE-78
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-7789 is a MODERATE (CVSS 5.6) os command injection vulnerability (CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')) affecting Node notifier libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves os command injection in node-notifier. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 8.0.1.

CVE-2020-7789 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-7789
GHSA Identifier GHSA-5fw9-fq32-wv5p
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 5.6
CWE Classification CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')
Affected Product Node notifier
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 5.6

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:U/C:L/I:L/A:L).

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

How to Fix CVE-2020-7789

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Node notifier 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-notifier fixed: 8.0.1 
npm install node-notifier@8.0.1
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-notifier

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2020-7789, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls node-notifier

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Node notifier in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 8.0.1), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls node-notifier 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-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection'), where the product constructs all or part of an os command using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the intended os command when it is sent to a downstream component. In Node notifier, 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

This affects the package node-notifier before 8.0.1. It allows an attacker to run arbitrary commands on Linux machines due to the options params not being sanitised when being passed an array.

CVE-2020-7789 Affected Node notifier Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
8.0.1
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
node-notifier
npm/node-notifier
npm
< 8.0.1
8.0.1

References

NVD — CVE-2020-7789 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-7789
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/mikaelbr/node-notifier/commit/5d62799dab88505a709cd032653b2320c5813fce
Node notifier Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/mikaelbr/node-notifier/blob/master/lib/utils.js%23L303
snyk.io/vuln/snyk-java-orgw... WEB
https://snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-JAVA-ORGWEBJARSNPM-1050371
snyk.io/vuln/snyk-js-nodeno... WEB
https://snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-JS-NODENOTIFIER-1035794

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-7789?
CVE-2020-7789 is a security vulnerability in Node notifier involving OS Command Injection in node-notifier under CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection').
Which Node notifier versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 8.0.1 across affected packages: node-notifier.
What version fixes CVE-2020-7789?
Upgrading to 8.0.1 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is node-notifier affected?
Yes, node-notifier is affected in releases prior to 8.0.1. Upgrade your dependency to 8.0.1 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-7789?
CVE-2020-7789 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 5.6 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2020-7789?
CVE-2020-7789 is classified under CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection') (The product constructs all or part of an OS command using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the intended OS command when it is sent to a downstream component.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2020-7789?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls node-notifier'. 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-5fw9-fq32-wv5p",
  "modified" : "2020-12-21T16:03:51Z",
  "published" : "2020-12-21T16:04:07Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-7789" ],
  "summary" : "OS Command Injection in node-notifier",
  "details" : "This affects the package node-notifier before 8.0.1. It allows an attacker to run arbitrary commands on Linux machines due to the options params not being sanitised when being passed an array.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "node-notifier"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "8.0.1"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-7789"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/mikaelbr/node-notifier/commit/5d62799dab88505a709cd032653b2320c5813fce"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/mikaelbr/node-notifier/blob/master/lib/utils.js%23L303"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-JAVA-ORGWEBJARSNPM-1050371"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-JS-NODENOTIFIER-1035794"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-78" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2020-12-17T23:00:02Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}