yayson: Prototype pollution in Store/LegacyStore deserialization (CVE-2026-61534)
# Summary `Store`/`LegacyStore` key internal lookup tables by the `type`, `id`, and relationship names from a JSON:API document. Because these were plain objects, a document with `type: "__proto__"` writes onto `Object.prototype`, polluting every object in the process. # Severity Suggested CVSS v3.1 `AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H` (8.1). The guaranteed impact is process-wide DoS / logic corruption; escalation to authorization bypass or RCE is dependent on gadgets in the consuming application. # Affected / Patched - Affected: `<= 4.2.0` (verified in `3.0.0` and `4.2.0`; all 3.x and 4.x). - Patched: `4.3.0`. # Details `type` is a string *value*, untouched by `JSON.parse`, and is used directly as an object key: ```js if (!models[type]) models[type] = {} // models["__proto__"] is Object.prototype → skipped if (!models[type][id]) models[type][id] = model // → Object.prototype[id] = model ``` The attacker controls the polluted key (`id`) and value (the model, populated from `attributes`). Pollution persists for the process lifetime. The malicious type can also arrive via an `included` resource referenced by a relationship, bypassing any `data.type` allow-list. `LegacyStore` is additionally reachable when a configured `types` mapping resolves to `"__proto__"`. # Proof of concept ```js const { Store } = require('yayson')() new Store().sync({ data: { type: '__proto__', id: 'polluted', attributes: { x: 1 } } }) console.log(({}).polluted) // { x: 1, id: 'polluted' } ← Object.prototype polluted ``` # Workarounds Reject documents whose `type` or relationship names are `__proto__`, `constructor`, or `prototype`, or run Node with `--disable-proto=throw`. # Fix Null-prototype lookup tables, rejection of `__proto__`/`constructor`/`prototype` as document-derived member names, `Object.keys()` iteration, and null-prototype normalization of caller-supplied caches.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
The yayson library's Store and LegacyStore components use plain objects keyed by the 'type' field from JSON:API documents. If an attacker submits a document with type set to "__proto__", this key overwrites Object.prototype, polluting all objects in the process. The attacker controls the polluted key and value, which can lead to process-wide denial of service or logic corruption. The vulnerability is present in all versions up to and including 4.2.0 and was patched in 4.3.0 by using null-prototype lookup tables and rejecting dangerous keys. The vulnerability has a CVSS v3.1 score of 9.1 (critical).
Potential Impact
The guaranteed impact is process-wide denial of service or logic corruption due to prototype pollution. While confidentiality is not affected, integrity and availability are highly impacted. Escalation to authorization bypass or remote code execution depends on the presence of exploitable gadgets in the consuming application. The pollution persists for the lifetime of the process, affecting all objects.
Mitigation Recommendations
A fix is available in yayson version 4.3.0. Users should upgrade to this version to remediate the vulnerability. As a workaround, reject JSON:API documents whose 'type' or relationship names are '__proto__', 'constructor', or 'prototype'. Alternatively, run Node.js with the --disable-proto=throw flag to prevent prototype pollution. No other mitigation is required once patched.
yayson: Prototype pollution in Store/LegacyStore deserialization (CVE-2026-61534)
Description
# Summary `Store`/`LegacyStore` key internal lookup tables by the `type`, `id`, and relationship names from a JSON:API document. Because these were plain objects, a document with `type: "__proto__"` writes onto `Object.prototype`, polluting every object in the process. # Severity Suggested CVSS v3.1 `AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H` (8.1). The guaranteed impact is process-wide DoS / logic corruption; escalation to authorization bypass or RCE is dependent on gadgets in the consuming application. # Affected / Patched - Affected: `<= 4.2.0` (verified in `3.0.0` and `4.2.0`; all 3.x and 4.x). - Patched: `4.3.0`. # Details `type` is a string *value*, untouched by `JSON.parse`, and is used directly as an object key: ```js if (!models[type]) models[type] = {} // models["__proto__"] is Object.prototype → skipped if (!models[type][id]) models[type][id] = model // → Object.prototype[id] = model ``` The attacker controls the polluted key (`id`) and value (the model, populated from `attributes`). Pollution persists for the process lifetime. The malicious type can also arrive via an `included` resource referenced by a relationship, bypassing any `data.type` allow-list. `LegacyStore` is additionally reachable when a configured `types` mapping resolves to `"__proto__"`. # Proof of concept ```js const { Store } = require('yayson')() new Store().sync({ data: { type: '__proto__', id: 'polluted', attributes: { x: 1 } } }) console.log(({}).polluted) // { x: 1, id: 'polluted' } ← Object.prototype polluted ``` # Workarounds Reject documents whose `type` or relationship names are `__proto__`, `constructor`, or `prototype`, or run Node with `--disable-proto=throw`. # Fix Null-prototype lookup tables, rejection of `__proto__`/`constructor`/`prototype` as document-derived member names, `Object.keys()` iteration, and null-prototype normalization of caller-supplied caches.
CVSS v3.1
Score 9.1critical
Affected software
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Weaknesses
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
The yayson library's Store and LegacyStore components use plain objects keyed by the 'type' field from JSON:API documents. If an attacker submits a document with type set to "__proto__", this key overwrites Object.prototype, polluting all objects in the process. The attacker controls the polluted key and value, which can lead to process-wide denial of service or logic corruption. The vulnerability is present in all versions up to and including 4.2.0 and was patched in 4.3.0 by using null-prototype lookup tables and rejecting dangerous keys. The vulnerability has a CVSS v3.1 score of 9.1 (critical).
Potential Impact
The guaranteed impact is process-wide denial of service or logic corruption due to prototype pollution. While confidentiality is not affected, integrity and availability are highly impacted. Escalation to authorization bypass or remote code execution depends on the presence of exploitable gadgets in the consuming application. The pollution persists for the lifetime of the process, affecting all objects.
Mitigation Recommendations
A fix is available in yayson version 4.3.0. Users should upgrade to this version to remediate the vulnerability. As a workaround, reject JSON:API documents whose 'type' or relationship names are '__proto__', 'constructor', or 'prototype'. Alternatively, run Node.js with the --disable-proto=throw flag to prevent prototype pollution. No other mitigation is required once patched.
Technical Details
- Gcve Source
- db.gcve.eu
- Osv Id
- GHSA-325j-mg25-8q58
- Osv Schema Version
- 1.4.0
- Aliases
- ["CVE-2026-61534"]
- Ecosystems
- ["npm"]
- Database Specific Severity
- CRITICAL
- Cvss Version
- 3.1
Threat ID: 6aa49ff055bf5e2cf5a861e3
Added to database: 09/12/2026, 00:42:24 UTC
Last enriched: 09/12/2026, 00:45:02 UTC
Last updated: 09/12/2026, 01:19:51 UTC
Views: 4
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