FedoraOperating system · Fedoraproject
CVE-2019-16776
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 · uneditedVersions of the npm CLI prior to 6.13.3 are vulnerable to an Arbitrary File Write. It fails to prevent access to folders outside of the intended node_modules folder through the bin field. A properly constructed entry in the package.json bin field would allow a package publisher to modify and/or gain access to arbitrary files on a user's system when the package is installed. This behavior is still possible through install scripts. This vulnerability bypasses a user using the --ignore-scripts install option.
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 npm CLI versions prior to 6.13.3 fail to properly sanitize the bin field in package.json, allowing a malicious package to write to arbitrary filesystem locations outside the intended node_modules directory. This vulnerability bypasses the --ignore-scripts safeguard, enabling arbitrary file write or modification during package installation.
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
FedoraOperating system
= 31
Enterprise LinuxOperating system
= 8.0
Enterprise Linux EusOperating system
= 8.1< 6.13.3= 15.1= 19.3.0.2CVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 installed npm CLI versionRun the command 'npm --version' or 'npm -v' in your terminal to retrieve the installed npm version numberAffected if The version displayed is less than 6.13.3 (for example, 6.13.2, 6.13.1, 6.12.0, etc.)
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Verify npm version across environmentsIf you have multiple Node.js installations or container images, check the npm version in each environment using 'npm --version'Affected if Any environment shows npm version < 6.13.3
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Check Node.js bundled npm versionRun 'node -e "console.log(require('npm/package.json').version)"' to check the npm version bundled with your Node.js installationAffected if The reported version is less than 6.13.3
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Inspect package.json bin fields during installationWhen installing packages from untrusted sources, review the package.json bin field for suspicious paths (such as '../', '~/.bashrc', or absolute paths) before running 'npm install'Affected if You install packages with bin entries pointing outside node_modules and your npm version is < 6.13.3
You are affected if the npm CLI version installed anywhere in your environment is lower than 6.13.3, regardless of --ignore-scripts settings.
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 data6.13.3
Upgrade npm CLI to version 6.13.3 or later to remediate this vulnerability.
Fix this in Fedora
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,376.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-16776 — 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-2019-16776 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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- 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
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