GHSA-w5m8-5v9m-xhx5
CRITICALGHSA-w5m8-5v9m-xhx5 is a critical-severity (CVSS 9.8) CWE-77 vulnerability in Haraka. 2 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. O3 Security confirms whether GHSA-w5m8-5v9m-xhx5 is actually reachable in your code before you act, and blocks exploitation at runtime until you patch.
Critical severity vulnerability that affects Haraka
Blast Radius
Weekly download volume for affected packages — a proxy for how broadly this vulnerability is deployed.
HarakanpmDescription
Haraka version 2.8.8 and earlier comes with a plugin for processing attachments for zip files. Versions 2.8.8 and earlier can be vulnerable to command injection.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📦npm | Haraka | all versions | 2.8.9 |
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 Haraka. 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 Haraka to 2.8.9 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-w5m8-5v9m-xhx5 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-w5m8-5v9m-xhx5 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-w5m8-5v9m-xhx5. 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-w5m8-5v9m-xhx5 in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-w5m8-5v9m-xhx5 across npm dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.