CVE-2017-16203
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedThe coffe-script module exfiltrates sensitive data such as a user's private SSH key and bash history to a third party server during installation.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceThe coffe-script npm package contains malicious code that exfiltrates sensitive user data during installation, specifically targeting private SSH keys and bash history, sending this information to a third-party server.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data= 1.0.1CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check for coffe-script package installationRun 'npm list --depth=0' or 'npm ls coffe-script' to see if the coffe-script package (note: double f, not coffee-script) is installed in your project or globallyAffected if The coffe-script package appears in the npm list output
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Verify installed versionCheck the version of the coffe-script package by running 'npm list coffe-script' or inspecting package.json if listed as a dependencyAffected if The installed version is exactly 1.0.1
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Inspect package scriptsRun 'npm show coffe-script scripts' or inspect the package's package.json via 'npm view coffe-script' to see if a postinstall script is definedAffected if A postinstall script is present that could execute during installation
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Check for suspicious network behaviorMonitor network connections during npm install or review any known indicators of data exfiltration to external serversAffected if Data is being sent to unknown third-party servers during package installation
You are affected if the coffe-script package (with double f) version 1.0.1 is installed in your environment, as this malicious package was designed to exfiltrate SSH keys and bash history during its installation.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataImmediately remove the coffe-script package from any affected installations using 'npm uninstall coffe-script', and treat any private SSH keys and bash history potentially present during installation as compromised—rotate SSH keys and advise users of potential exposure.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-16203 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2017-16203 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data