GHSA-2v5f-23xc-v9qr is a medium-severity (CVSS 6.1) Cross-site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in ansi_up. 1 public exploit reference exists, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for ansi_up — see the affected versions and patch details below.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
GHSA-2v5f-23xc-v9qr by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). Outside the shaded patch-first corner.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 385,987 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.
ansi_upnpmDescription
The npm package ansi_up converts ANSI escape codes into HTML. In ansi_up v4, ANSI escape codes can be used to create HTML hyperlinks. Due to insufficient URL sanitization, this feature is affected by a cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability. This issue is fixed in v5.0.0.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📦npm | ansi_up | all versions | 5.0.0npm install ansi_up@5.0.0 |
Affected Products
ansi upansi_up_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 ansi_up, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update ansi_up to 5.0.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-2v5f-23xc-v9qr is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Escape or sanitise the affected output on the server side rather than relying on client-side filtering, and add a Content-Security-Policy that blocks inline script execution so injected markup cannot run even if it reaches the page.
How to detect GHSA-2v5f-23xc-v9qr
A community-maintained Nuclei template exists for this CVE. You can scan for it directly:
nuclei -id ghsa-2v5f-23xc-v9qr -u https://target- Template
- npm ansi_up v4 - Cross-Site Scripting
- Severity
- medium
- Impact
- Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could allow an attacker to execute malicious scripts in the context of a user's browser, leading to potential data theft or unauthorized actions.
- Remediation
- Upgrade to v5.0.0 or later.
Template by ProjectDiscovery nuclei-templates (geeknik), MIT licensed. View the full template. Scan only systems you are authorised to test.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-2v5f-23xc-v9qr in your dependencies?
Find it across npm, including transitive dependencies.