CVE-2022-29166 — matrix-appservice-irc
HIGHCVE-2022-29166 is a high-severity (CVSS 8) CWE-74 vulnerability in matrix-appservice-irc. A fix is available for matrix-appservice-irc — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Improper handling of multiline messages in matrix-appservice-irc
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
- CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2022-29166.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2022-29166 plotted by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). The shaded corner — EPSS 50%+ and CVSS 7.0+ — is where this CVE doesn't sit, though severity or exploitability alone can still warrant action.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 377,166 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
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.
matrix-appservice-ircnpmDescription
matrix-appservice-irc is a Node.js IRC bridge for Matrix. The vulnerability in node-irc allows an attacker to manipulate a Matrix user into executing IRC commands by having them reply to a maliciously crafted message. The vulnerability has been patched in matrix-appservice-irc 0.33.2. Refrain from replying to messages from untrusted participants in IRC-bridged Matrix rooms. There are no known workarounds for this issue.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📦npm | matrix-appservice-irc | all versions | 0.33.2npm install matrix-appservice-irc@0.33.2 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for matrix-appservice-irc, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update matrix-appservice-irc to 0.33.2 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2022-29166 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.
How O3 protects you
O3 Security's impact-aware SCA analyses which vulnerable code paths your application actually calls, so a match like CVE-2022-29166 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2022-29166. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2022-29166 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2022-29166 across npm dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.