Permission bypass via unchecked Unix socket connection
Published Jan 20, 2026 · Updated Jan 20, 2026
Access-control bypass in Node.js 25.2.1 and earlier allows attackers to connect to arbitrary local Unix domain sockets. The pipe_wrap connection path accepts socket paths from net, tls, and undici/fetch without applying the permission model's network check. Reachability requires --permission without --allow-net and attacker-controlled input inside the process; exposed privileged services can disclose data or execute commands.
Summary
What happened
Access-control bypass in Node.js 25.2.1 and earlier allows attackers to connect to arbitrary local Unix domain sockets. The pipe_wrap connection path accepts socket paths from net, tls, and undici/fetch without applying the permission model's network check. Reachability requires --permission without --allow-net and attacker-controlled input inside the process; exposed privileged services can disclose data or execute commands.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-21636
- Published
- Jan 20, 2026
- Updated
- Jan 20, 2026
- Vendor
- Node.js
- Product
- Node.js
- Classifications
- CWE-284, T1559
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jan 20, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Jan 20, 2026Record 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=25.2.1 <=25.2.1
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Public exploit references
- CVE-2026-21636 Node.js Permission Model UDS/Network Bypass PoCproof of concept · demonstrated
Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.
Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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