#VU74226 Incorrect regular expression in papaparse - CVE-2020-36649

Vulnerability identifier: #VU74226

Vulnerability risk: Medium

CVSSv4.0: 6.6 [CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/U:Green]

CVE-ID: CVE-2020-36649

CWE-ID: CWE-185

Exploitation vector: Network

Exploit availability: No

Vulnerable software:
papaparse
Web applications / JS libraries

Vendor: GabrielL

Description

The vulnerability allows a remote attacker to perform regular expression denial of service (ReDoS) attack.

The vulnerability exists due to usage of a very complex regular expression in papaparse.js. A remote attacker can pass specially crafted input to the application and consume extensive system resources, resulting in a denial of service condition.

Mitigation
Install updates from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

papaparse: 5.0.0 - 5.1.1

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External links
https://github.com/mholt/PapaParse/commit/235a12758cd77266d2e98fd715f53536b34ad621
https://github.com/mholt/PapaParse/pull/779
https://github.com/mholt/PapaParse/issues/777
https://vuldb.com/?ctiid.218004
https://vuldb.com/?id.218004
https://github.com/mholt/PapaParse/releases/tag/5.2.0

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Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

Yes. This vulnerability can be exploited by a remote non-authenticated attacker via the Internet.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability.