libxmljs2 vulnerable to type confusion when parsing specially crafted XMLGHSA-78h3-pg4x-j8cv
HIGHGHSA-78h3-pg4x-j8cv is a high-severity (CVSS 8.1) CWE-843 vulnerability in libxmljs2. The records list no fixed version yet; check the vendor advisory below and apply the mitigations in the meantime.
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.
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for GHSA-78h3-pg4x-j8cv.
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
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.
libxmljs2npmDescription
libxmljs2 is vulnerable to a type confusion vulnerability when parsing a specially crafted XML while invoking the namespaces() function (which invokes XmlNode::get_local_namespaces()) on a grand-child of a node that refers to an entity. This vulnerability can lead to denial of service and remote code execution.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📦npm | libxmljs2 | all versions | No fix |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for libxmljs2, 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 libxmljs2 for GHSA-78h3-pg4x-j8cv. Check the maintainer's advisory, and where your build allows, override or pin the dependency away from the vulnerable range.
Mitigate without a patch
Cap what an attacker can consume: apply request size, rate and timeout limits in front of the affected component, and run it with memory and CPU limits so exhaustion degrades one worker rather than the whole service.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-78h3-pg4x-j8cv in your dependencies?
Find it across npm, including transitive dependencies.