CVE-2026-13311
shell-quote parse() is quadratic in token count, enabling denial of service
HIGH 8.7
At a glance
- Source
- NVD
- EPSS
- EPSS 0.36 % · percentile 30 ()
- State
- PUBLISHED
- Published
- Updated
- Assigner
- harborist
- NVD status
- Analyzed
Description
shell-quote prior to 1.8.5 finalizes parsed tokens in parse() using Array.prototype.concat as a reduce accumulator, which reallocates and copies the entire growing array on every iteration. As a result parse() runs in O(n^2) time relative to the number of input tokens. An attacker who can supply an attacker-controlled string to any code path that calls parse() (no shell metacharacters are required; plain space-separated words suffice) can block the single-threaded Node.js event loop for an extended period with a small input, resulting in a denial of service. There is no code execution or data disclosure; impact is to availability only. Fixed in 1.8.5.
Weaknesses (CWE)
- CWE-407 — Inefficient Algorithmic Complexity
References
Scores
| Version | Score | Vector | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 4.0 | HIGH 8.7 | CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N | harborist |
| CVSS 3.1 | HIGH 7.5 | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H | harborist |
| CVSS 4.0 | HIGH 8.7 | CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X | NVD · 7ffcee3d-2c14-4c3e-b844-86c6a321a158 (Secondary) |
| CVSS 3.1 | HIGH 7.5 | CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H | NVD · 7ffcee3d-2c14-4c3e-b844-86c6a321a158 (Secondary) |
Advisories
- GHSA-395f-4hp3-45gv — shell-quote: Quadratic-complexity Denial of Service in `parse()` (CWE-407)
European references
- ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2026-39180
- GCVE · GCVE-0-2026-13311
CERT-FR advisories
- CERTFR-2026-AVI-1233 — Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits IBM · cert.ssi.gouv.fr
- CERTFR-2026-AVI-1094 — Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits IBM · cert.ssi.gouv.fr
- CERTFR-2026-AVI-0958 — Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits IBM · cert.ssi.gouv.fr
Affected configurations (NVD CPE)
cpe:2.3:a:shell-quote_project:shell-quote:*:*:*:*:*:node.js:*:*< 1.9.0
Affected products
| Product | Versions |
|---|---|
| ljharb · shell-quote | affected 0 ≤ 1.8.4 |
Sources
| Source | Licence |
|---|---|
| CVE List (CVEProject cvelistV5) | CVE Program Terms of Use |
| EPSS (FIRST.org) | FIRST — attribution requested |
| ENISA EUVD | ENISA — reproduction authorised, source acknowledged |
| CERT-FR (ANSSI) | Licence Ouverte / Etalab 2.0 |
| NVD (NIST) via fkie-cad/nvd-json-data-feeds | Public domain — this product uses data from the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD |