GHSA-rv95-896h-c2vc
MODERATE
Express.js Open Redirect in malformed URLs
Published March 25, 2024Updated February 4, 2026Source: osv
Details
### Impact
Versions of Express.js prior to 4.19.2 and pre-release alpha and beta versions before 5.0.0-beta.3 are affected by an open redirect vulnerability using malformed URLs.
When a user of Express performs a redirect using a user-provided URL Express performs an encode [using `encodeurl`](https://github.com/pillarjs/encodeurl) on the contents before passing it to the `location` header. This can cause malformed URLs to be evaluated in unexpected ways by common redirect allow list implementations in Express applications, leading to an Open Redirect via bypass of a properly implemented allow list.
The main method impacted is `res.location()` but this is also called from within `res.redirect()`.
### Patches
https://github.com/expressjs/express/commit/0867302ddbde0e9463d0564fea5861feb708c2dd
https://github.com/expressjs/express/commit/0b746953c4bd8e377123527db11f9cd866e39f94
An initial fix went out with `express@4.19.0`, we then patched a feature regression in `4.19.1` and added improved handling for the bypass in `4.19.2`.
### Workarounds
The fix for this involves pre-parsing the url string with either `require('node:url').parse` or `new URL`. These are steps you can take on your own before passing the user input string to `res.location` or `res.redirect`.
### Resources
https://github.com/expressjs/express/pull/5539
https://github.com/koajs/koa/issues/1800
https://expressjs.com/en/4x/api.html#res.location
Remediation
Upgrade to the fixed version using your package manager.
npm
Update express to 4.19.2 or laternpm install express@4.19.2
npm
Update express to 5.0.0-beta.3 or laternpm install express@5.0.0-beta.3
After upgrading, run your dependency scanner again to confirm the vulnerability is resolved.
Affected Packages (2)
Vulnerability Classification
Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) identifiers for this vulnerability type.
- CWE-1286
- CWE-601Open RedirectMITRE
CVSS Score Breakdown
What the CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) 3.1 score means for each attack dimension.
Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
References
- https://github.com/expressjs/express/security/advisories/GHSA-rv95-896h-c2vcWEB
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-29041ADVISORY
- https://github.com/koajs/koa/issues/1800WEB
- https://github.com/expressjs/express/pull/5539WEB
- https://github.com/expressjs/express/commit/0867302ddbde0e9463d0564fea5861feb708c2ddWEB
- https://github.com/expressjs/express/commit/0b746953c4bd8e377123527db11f9cd866e39f94WEB
- https://expressjs.com/en/4x/api.html#res.locationWEB
- https://github.com/expressjs/expressPACKAGE
Risk Assessment
CVSS Score
3.1
Exploitation is difficult or impact is minor. Address in your next planned update.
EPSS Score (30-day exploit probability)
0.11%
Higher than 30% of vulnerabilities
Also Known As
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