CVE-2021-45459 is a critical-severity (CVSS 9.8) CWE-77 vulnerability in node-windows. 1 public exploit reference exists, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for node-windows — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Command Injection in node-windows
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2021-45459 by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). Outside the shaded patch-first corner.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 385,386 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Counts from FIRST.org, log-scaled.
Real-World Exposure
How broadly this vulnerability is actually deployed: weekly install volume shows current usage, and reverse-dependency count shows how many other packages break if it stays unpatched.
node-windowsnpmDescription
lib/cmd.js in the node-windows package before 1.0.0-beta.6 for Node.js allows command injection via the PID parameter.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📦npm | node-windows | all versions | 1.0.0-beta.6npm install node-windows@1.0.0-beta.6 |
Affected Products
node-windowsnode-windows_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 node-windows, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update node-windows to 1.0.0-beta.6 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2021-45459 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Stop passing untrusted input into the interpreter or shell: call the affected binary with an argument array rather than a composed command string, reject anything outside a strict allowlist of expected values, and run the component under an account that cannot reach beyond the work it legitimately does.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2021-45459 in your dependencies?
Find it across npm, including transitive dependencies.