CVE-2024-5550 — h2o
MEDIUMCVE-2024-5550 is a medium-severity (CVSS 5.3) Path Traversal vulnerability in h2o. 1 public exploit or proof-of-concept reference is indexed, so weaponization risk is real. The records list no fixed version yet; check the vendor advisory below and apply the mitigations in the meantime.
Exposure of Sensitive Information via Arbitrary System Path Lookup in h2oai/h2o-3
Exploitation Status
Proof-of-concept exploit code exists
- CISA’s SSVC triage found public proof-of-concept exploit code for this CVE, though no confirmed active exploitation.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2024-5550.
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
h2oReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects PyPI packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
In h2oai/h2o-3 version 3.40.0.4, an exposure of sensitive information vulnerability exists due to an arbitrary system path lookup feature. This vulnerability allows any remote user to view full paths in the entire file system where h2o-3 is hosted. Specifically, the issue resides in the Typeahead API call, which when requested with a typeahead lookup of '/', exposes the root filesystem including directories such as /home, /usr, /bin, among others. This vulnerability could allow attackers to explore the entire filesystem, and when combined with a Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability, could make exploitation of the server trivial.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐍PyPI | h2o | all versions | No fix |
Affected Products
h2oh2oResearch 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 h2o, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Remediation status
The records we use list no patched version of h2o for CVE-2024-5550. Check the maintainer's advisory, and where your build allows, override or pin the dependency away from the vulnerable range.
Mitigate without a patch
Resolve every user-supplied path to its canonical form and reject anything that escapes the intended directory, and run the component under an account that has no read or write access outside the directory it legitimately serves.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2024-5550 in your dependencies?
Find it across PyPI, including transitive dependencies.