GHSA-3x4c-7xq6-9pq8
Next.js: Unbounded next/image disk cache growth can exhaust storage
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.
Blast Radius
Weekly download volume for affected packages — a proxy for how broadly this vulnerability is deployed.
nextnpmDescription
Summary
The default Next.js image optimization disk cache (/_next/image) did not have a configurable upper bound, allowing unbounded cache growth.
Impact
An attacker could generate many unique image-optimization variants and exhaust disk space, causing denial of service. Note that this does not impact platforms that have their own image optimization capabilities, such as Vercel.
Patches
Fixed by adding an LRU-backed disk cache with images.maximumDiskCacheSize, including eviction of least-recently-used entries when the limit is exceeded. Setting maximumDiskCacheSize: 0 disables disk caching.
Workarounds
If upgrade is not immediately possible:
- Periodically clean
.next/cache/images. - Reduce variant cardinality (e.g., tighten values for
images.localPatterns,images.remotePatterns, andimages.qualities)
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📦npm | next | ≥ 16.0.0-beta.0&&< 16.1.7 | 16.1.7 |
| 📦npm | next | ≥ 10.0.0&&< 15.5.14 | 15.5.14 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for next. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update next to 16.1.7 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-3x4c-7xq6-9pq8 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 pinpoints whether GHSA-3x4c-7xq6-9pq8 is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to GHSA-3x4c-7xq6-9pq8. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-3x4c-7xq6-9pq8 in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-3x4c-7xq6-9pq8 across npm dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.