Filesystem access bypass via overwritten path utilities
Published Oct 18, 2023 · Updated Nov 3, 2025
Path traversal in Node.js 20.0.0 through 20.8.0 allows local users to bypass experimental permission-model file restrictions. The permission implementation calls mutable built-in path utilities, so user-defined replacements can subvert normalization before filesystem access checks. Exploitation requires the opt-in experimental permission model and code able to replace those utilities, enabling reads or writes outside allowed paths.
Summary
What happened
Path traversal in Node.js 20.0.0 through 20.8.0 allows local users to bypass experimental permission-model file restrictions. The permission implementation calls mutable built-in path utilities, so user-defined replacements can subvert normalization before filesystem access checks. Exploitation requires the opt-in experimental permission model and code able to replace those utilities, enabling reads or writes outside allowed paths.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2023-39331
- Published
- Oct 18, 2023
- Updated
- Nov 3, 2025
- Vendor
- Node.js
- Product
- Node.js
- Classifications
- CWE-22, T1005
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Oct 18, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Nov 3, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=10.0 <10.*
- Affected versionversion=11.0 <11.*
- Affected versionversion=12.0 <12.*
- Affected versionversion=13.0 <13.*
- Affected versionversion=14.0 <14.*
- Affected versionversion=15.0 <15.*
- Affected versionversion=16.0 <16.*
- Affected versionversion=17.0 <17.*
- Affected versionversion=19.0 <19.*
- Affected versionversion=20.0 <20.8.1
- Affected versionversion=4.0 <4.*
- Affected versionversion=5.0 <5.*
- Affected versionversion=6.0 <6.*
- Affected versionversion=7.0 <7.*
- Affected versionversion=8.0 <8.*
- Affected versionversion=9.0 <9.*
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
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Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
No public exploit references are available in this record.
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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