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VulnerabilityPublished Updated

CVE-2026-42290: protobufjs protobuf.js · OS Command Injection

Affects protobufjs protobuf.jsSource CVE Database V5

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Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.8 High : upgrade to 2.0.2 or 1.2.1 soon.

Data as of 30 Oct 2026, 11:52 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score
7.8High
How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.
EPSS
0.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 2% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch
Available – fixed in 2.0.2, 1.2.1
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Exploitation evidence

  1. Disclosed: evidence found.

    CVE published 13 May 2026

  2. Detectable: no evidence on record.

    No public nuclei template indexed

  3. Weaponized: no evidence on record.

    No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB

  4. Exploited in the wild: no evidence on record.

    Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation

  5. Observed by OffSeq Mirage: no evidence on record.

    No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 30 Oct 2026.

What to do

Upgrade protobuf.js to 2.0.2 or 1.2.1; protobufjs-cli to 1.2.1.

Affected software

ProductAffectedFixed in
protobufjsprotobuf.jsAffected
  • >=2.0.0 <2.0.2
Fixed in
  • 2.0.2
protobufjsprotobuf.jsAffected
  • <1.2.1
Fixed in
  • 1.2.1
npmprotobufjs-clipkg:npm/protobufjs-cliOther threatsAffected
  • <1.2.1
Fixed in
  • 1.2.1

Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.

AI-suggested

Upgrade protobufjs-cli to version 1.2.1 or 2.0.2 or later, where this vulnerability is fixed. Since this is a local command injection vulnerability triggered by crafted file paths, applying the official fix eliminates the risk. No additional mitigations are specified or required beyond upgrading.

Description

protobufjs-cli is the command line add-on for protobuf.js. Prior to 1.2.1 and 2.0.2, pbts invoked JSDoc by building a shell command string from input file paths and executing it through child_process.exec. File paths containing shell metacharacters could therefore be interpreted by the shell instead of being passed to JSDoc as plain arguments. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.2.1 and 2.0.2.

References

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