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OS Command InjectionWeakness · CWE-78

CVE-2024-21531

MEDIUM · 5.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-10-01
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
55/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Zero-click

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 · unedited
All versions of the package git-shallow-clone are vulnerable to Command injection due to missing sanitization or mitigation flags in the process variable of the gitShallowClone function.

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 confidence

The git-shallow-clone npm package contains a command injection vulnerability in the gitShallowClone function where the process variable is not sanitized before execution, allowing an attacker to inject arbitrary shell commands via untrusted input.

MitigationAvoid using this package until a patched version is released; if immediate use is required, implement strict input validation and avoid passing user-controlled data to the process variable.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

CVSS 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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
Low

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Locate git-shallow-clone in your project dependencies
    Search your package.json files for 'git-shallow-clone' in the dependencies, devDependencies, or nested node_modules directories. Run: grep -r 'git-shallow-clone' package.json node_modules/*/package.json 2>/dev/null
    Affected if The package is listed as a dependency or found in node_modules
  2. Determine the installed version
    Run npm list git-shallow-clone or cat the package.json file in node_modules/git-shallow-clone/package.json to read the version field
    Affected if Any version is found; the vulnerability stems from unsanitized input handling in code rather than a specific version defect, so presence alone indicates potential risk if user input reaches this function
  3. Identify code paths that call gitShallowClone
    Search your codebase for invocations of gitShallowClone: grep -r 'gitShallowClone' --include='*.js' .
    Affected if The function is called anywhere in your codebase
  4. Check if external input flows to gitShallowClone
    Examine each call site found in step 3. Trace the arguments passed to gitShallowClone and determine if any originate from user request parameters, environment variables, file contents, or other untrusted sources
    Affected if Any argument to gitShallowClone directly or indirectly contains unsanitized user-controlled data
  5. Inspect the library source for unsanitized process usage
    View node_modules/git-shallow-clone/index.js and look for the gitShallowClone function implementation. Search for process.exec, child_process spawn/exec calls, or string concatenation where input variables are used without escaping or validation
    Affected if The code shows direct insertion of function arguments into shell command strings without sanitization (such as escaping shell metacharacters or using parameterized APIs)
  6. Verify runtime exposure to untrusted input
    At runtime, determine whether your application accepts remote user input (via HTTP headers, query parameters, body payload, or file uploads) and whether that data ultimately reaches gitShallowClone as verified in step 4
    Affected if User-supplied data from external sources can reach the gitShallowClone function without validation

You are affected if git-shallow-clone is installed in your project and any untrusted or user-controlled input can flow to the gitShallowClone function without sanitization, regardless of the package version.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Avoid using this package until a patched version is released; if immediate use is required, implement strict input validation and avoid passing user-controlled data to the process variable.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2024-21531 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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