GHSA-xpqm-wm3m-f34h
pnpm scoped bin name Path Traversal allows arbitrary file creation outside node_modules/.bin
Packages
Details
As written in the advisory (Markdown source, shown as plain text).
### Summary
A path traversal vulnerability in pnpm's bin linking allows malicious npm packages to create executable shims or symlinks outside of `node_modules/.bin`. Bin names starting with `@` bypass validation, and after scope normalization, path traversal sequences like `../../` remain intact.
### Details
The vulnerability exists in the bin name validation and normalization logic:
**1. Validation Bypass (`pkg-manager/package-bins/src/index.ts`)**
The filter allows any bin name starting with `@` to pass through without validation:
```typescript
.filter((commandName) =>
encodeURIComponent(commandName) === commandName ||
commandName === '' ||
commandName[0] === '@' // <-- Bypasses validation
)
```
**2. Incomplete Normalization (`pkg-manager/package-bins/src/index.ts`)**
```typescript
function normalizeBinName (name: string): string {
return name[0] === '@' ? name.slice(name.indexOf('/') + 1) : name
}
// Input: @scope/../../evil
// Output: ../../evil <-- Path traversal preserved!
```
**3. Exploitation (`pkg-manager/link-bins/src/index.ts:288`)**
The normalized name is used directly in `path.join()` without validation.
### PoC
1. Create a malicious package:
```json
{
"name": "malicious-pkg",
"version": "1.0.0",
"bin": {
"@scope/../../.npmrc": "./malicious.js"
}
}
```
2. Install the package:
```bash
pnpm add /path/to/malicious-pkg
```
3. Observe `.npmrc` created in project root (outside node_modules/.bin).
### Impact
- All pnpm users who install npm packages
- CI/CD pipelines using pnpm
- Can overwrite config files, scripts, or other sensitive files
Verified on pnpm main @ commit 5a0ed1d45.
References
External links from the advisory. They lead to third-party sites.