GHSA-4hwq-4cpm-8vmx
LOWVyper's `extract32` can ready dirty memory
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
vyperReal-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
Summary
When using the built-in extract32(b, start), if the start index provided has for side effect to update b, the byte array to extract 32 bytes from, it could be that some dirty memory is read and returned by extract32.
As of v0.4.0 (specifically, commit https://github.com/vyperlang/vyper/commit/3d9c537142fb99b2672f21e2057f5f202cde194f), the compiler will panic instead of generating bytecode.
Details
Before evaluating start, the function Extract32.build_IR caches only:
- The pointer in memory/storage to
b: https://github.com/vyperlang/vyper/blob/10564dcc37756f3d3684b7a91fd8f4325a38c4d8/vyper/builtins/functions.py#L916-L918 - The length of
b: https://github.com/vyperlang/vyper/blob/10564dcc37756f3d3684b7a91fd8f4325a38c4d8/vyper/builtins/functions.py#L920-L922
but do not cache the actual content of b. This means that if the evaluation of start changes b's content and length, an outdated length will be used with the new content when extracting 32 bytes from b.
PoC
Calling the function foo of the following contract returns b'uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu\x00\x00789' meaning that extract32 accessed some dirty memory.
var:Bytes[96]
@internal
def bar() -> uint256:
self.var = b'uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu'
self.var = b''
return 3
@external
def foo() -> bytes32:
self.var = b'abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz123456789'
return extract32(self.var, self.bar(), output_type=bytes32)
# returns b'uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu\x00\x00789'
Impact
For contracts that are affected, it means that calling extract32 returns dirty memory bytes instead of some expected output.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐍PyPI | vyper | all versions | 0.4.0 |
Research 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 vyper. 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 vyper to 0.4.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-4hwq-4cpm-8vmx 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-4hwq-4cpm-8vmx 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-4hwq-4cpm-8vmx. 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-4hwq-4cpm-8vmx in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-4hwq-4cpm-8vmx across PyPI dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.