CVE-2021-39176: Detect character encoding Missing Release Of Memory After Vulnerability
HIGHCVE-2021-39176 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) missing release of memory after vulnerability (CWE-401: Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime) affecting Detect character encoding libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves missing release of memory after effective lifetime in detect-character-encoding. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 0.3.1.
CVE-2021-39176 at a Glance
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).
How to Fix CVE-2021-39176
To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Detect character encoding dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.
npm install detect-character-encoding@0.3.1Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release:
npm ls detect-character-encodingHow to Check if You Are Affected
To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2021-39176, inspect your project dependencies using npm:
npm ls detect-character-encodingAnalyze the terminal output to locate any version of Detect character encoding in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 0.3.1), your application is affected.
Note: The npm ls detect-character-encoding 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-401: Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime, where the product does not sufficiently track and release allocated memory after it has been used, making the memory unavailable for reallocation and reuse. In Detect character encoding, 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
CVE-2021-39176 Affected Detect character encoding Versions
1 component(s)| Product / Package | Ecosystem | Affected Versions | Fixed Version |
|---|---|---|---|
|
detect-character-encoding
|
npm |
< 0.3.1
|
0.3.1
|
References
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CVE-2021-39176?
Which Detect character encoding versions are affected?
What version fixes CVE-2021-39176?
Is detect-character-encoding affected?
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2021-39176?
What CWE is associated with CVE-2021-39176?
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2021-39176?
Machine-readable OSV JSON
OSV v1.5 Schema
{
"schema_version" : "1.4.0",
"id" : "GHSA-5rwj-j5m3-3chj",
"modified" : "2021-10-21T14:28:07Z",
"published" : "2021-09-01T18:25:16Z",
"aliases" : [ "CVE-2021-39176" ],
"summary" : "Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime in detect-character-encoding",
"details" : "### Impact\n\nIn detect-character-encoding v0.3.0 and earlier, allocated memory is not released.\n\n### Patches\n\nThe problem has been patched in [detect-character-encoding v0.3.1](https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding/releases/tag/v0.3.1).\n\n### CVSS score\n\n[CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H/RL:O/RC:C](https://www.first.org/cvss/calculator/3.1#CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H/RL:O/RC:C)\n\nBase Score: 7.5 (High)\nTemporal Score: 7.2 (High)\n\nSince detect-character-encoding is a library, the scoring is based on the “[reasonable worst-case implementation scenario](https://www.first.org/cvss/v3.1/user-guide#3-7-Scoring-Vulnerabilities-in-Software-Libraries-and-Similar)”, namely, using detect-character-encoding in a program accessible over the internet which becomes unavailable when running out of memory. Depending on your specific implementation, the vulnerability’s severity in your program may be different.\n\n### Proof of concept\n\n```js\nconst express = require(\"express\");\nconst detectCharacterEncoding = require(\"detect-character-encoding\");\n\nconst app = express();\n\napp.get(\"/\", (req, res) => {\n detectCharacterEncoding(Buffer.from(\"foo\"));\n\n res.end();\n});\n\napp.listen(3000);\n```\n\n`hey -n 1000000 http://localhost:3000` ([`hey`](https://github.com/rakyll/hey)) causes the Node.js process to consume more and more memory.\n\n### References\n\n- https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding/commit/d44356927b92e3b13e178071bf6d7c671766f588\n- https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding/pull/6",
"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" : "detect-character-encoding"
},
"ranges" : [ {
"type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
"events" : [ {
"introduced" : "0"
}, {
"fixed" : "0.3.1"
} ]
} ]
} ],
"references" : [ {
"type" : "WEB",
"url" : "https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding/security/advisories/GHSA-5rwj-j5m3-3chj"
}, {
"type" : "ADVISORY",
"url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-39176"
}, {
"type" : "WEB",
"url" : "https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding/pull/6"
}, {
"type" : "WEB",
"url" : "https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding/commit/d44356927b92e3b13e178071bf6d7c671766f588"
}, {
"type" : "PACKAGE",
"url" : "https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding"
}, {
"type" : "WEB",
"url" : "https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding/releases/tag/v0.3.1"
} ],
"database_specific" : {
"cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-401" ],
"severity" : "HIGH",
"github_reviewed" : true,
"github_reviewed_at" : "2021-08-31T19:58:46Z",
"nvd_published_at" : "2021-08-31T18:15:00Z"
}
}