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Vm2Application · Vm2 Project

CVE-2026-43999

CRITICAL · 9.9 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-05-13
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 3.11.0 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Public exploit Remotely reachable 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
vm2 is an open source vm/sandbox for Node.js. Prior to 3.11.0, NodeVM's builtin allowlist can be bypassed when the module builtin is allowed (including via the '*' wildcard). The module builtin exposes Node's Module._load(), which loads any module by name directly in the host context, completely bypassing vm2's builtin restriction. This allows sandboxed code to load excluded builtins like child_process and achieve remote code execution. This vulnerability is fixed in 3.11.0.

In the news

Third-party coverage
Trending covered by 1 outlet this week · latest 3mo ago

Surfaced from public web coverage — external links open in a new tab.

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

vm2 sandbox escape via module builtin bypass. When the 'module' builtin is allowed (explicitly or via '*' wildcard), attackers can invoke Node's Module._load() to load normally excluded builtins like child_process directly in the host context, bypassing vm2's builtin restrictions and achieving remote code execution.

MitigationUpgrade vm2 to version 3.11.0 or later. Avoid allowing the 'module' builtin in sandbox configurations.

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
Vm2Application
Affected:< 3.11.0

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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

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. Identify vm2 installation and version
    Run 'npm list vm2' or 'yarn list vm2' in your project directory to see the installed version. Check package.json dependencies if installed globally.
    Affected if vm2 version is below 3.11.0
  2. Find vm2 sandbox configurations
    Search your codebase for vm2 VM, Node, or Function constructor calls that include 'allow' or 'builtins' options. Use grep: 'grep -r "allow.*builtins"' or 'grep -r "builtins"' in your project.
    Affected if A sandbox configuration exists that allows the 'module' builtin explicitly or via wildcard '*'
  3. Inspect the builtins allowlist
    Examine the found sandbox configuration files and locate the 'builtins' or 'allow' array. Look for entries containing 'module' or '*'.
    Affected if The 'module' builtin is listed in the allowlist, or '*' wildcard is used in the builtins configuration

You are affected if vm2 version is below 3.11.0 AND your sandbox configuration explicitly allows the 'module' builtin or uses the '*' wildcard in the builtins allowlist.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 3.11.0 or later
Fixed in 3.11.0
Interim mitigation

Upgrade vm2 to version 3.11.0 or later. Avoid allowing the 'module' builtin in sandbox configurations.

Recommended fix High confidence

vm2 version 3.11.0 or later

  1. 1. Identify all projects and dependencies that use vm2 version < 3.11.0 by reviewing package.json files and running npm list vm2
  2. 2. Update the vm2 dependency version in package.json to ^3.11.0 or the latest stable version
  3. 3. Run 'npm update vm2' or 'npm install vm2@latest' to fetch the fixed version
  4. 4. Run 'npm audit' to verify the vulnerability is resolved
  5. 5. Test that the sandboxed code still functions correctly with the updated vm2 version
  6. 6. Rebuild and redeploy any applications using the updated dependency
Caveat Review vm2 changelog between your current version and 3.11.0 for any API changes that may affect sandbox behavior

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Vm2 Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,400
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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-2026-43999 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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