8.5
HIGH CVSS 4.0
CVE-2026-57998
better-npm-audit OS Command Injection via registry flag
Description

better-npm-audit through 3.11.0, and the 4.0.0-rc.2 prerelease, builds its npm audit command by interpolating the user-supplied --registry option into a command string in src/handlers/handleInput.ts without validation or quoting, then passes that string to child_process.exec() in index.ts, which spawns a shell. A registry value containing shell metacharacters such as a semicolon, pipe, or command substitution executes arbitrary operating system commands with the privileges of the process running the audit.

INFO

Published Date :

Aug. 22, 2026, 1:16 p.m.

Last Modified :

Aug. 22, 2026, 1:16 p.m.

Remotely Exploit :

No
Affected Products

The following products are affected by CVE-2026-57998 vulnerability. Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the products that are affected, the information is not represented in the table below.

No affected product recoded yet

CVSS Scores
The Common Vulnerability Scoring System is a standardized framework for assessing the severity of vulnerabilities in software and systems. We collect and displays CVSS scores from various sources for each CVE.
Score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Score Impact Score Source
CVSS 3.1 HIGH 83251b91-4cc7-4094-a5c7-464a1b83ea10
CVSS 3.1 HIGH [email protected]
CVSS 4.0 HIGH 83251b91-4cc7-4094-a5c7-464a1b83ea10
CVSS 4.0 HIGH [email protected]
Solution
Update better-npm-audit to a version that validates and quotes registry options.
  • Update the better-npm-audit package to a fixed version.
  • Validate and quote user-supplied registry options.
  • Avoid using child_process.exec() with untrusted input.
  • Use safer child process functions.
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration

While CVE identifies specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-57998 is associated with the following CWEs:

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)

We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).

Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.

The following list is the news that have been mention CVE-2026-57998 vulnerability anywhere in the article.

The following table lists the changes that have been made to the CVE-2026-57998 vulnerability over time.

Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.

  • New CVE Received by [email protected]

    Aug. 22, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Affected [{'vendor': 'jeemok', 'product': 'better-npm-audit', 'versions': [{'status': 'affected', 'version': '0', 'versionType': 'semver', 'lessThanOrEqual': '3.11.0'}, {'status': 'affected', 'version': '4.0.0-rc.2', 'versionType': 'semver'}], 'packageURL': 'pkg:npm/better-npm-audit', 'defaultStatus': 'unaffected'}]
    Added Description better-npm-audit through 3.11.0, and the 4.0.0-rc.2 prerelease, builds its npm audit command by interpolating the user-supplied --registry option into a command string in src/handlers/handleInput.ts without validation or quoting, then passes that string to child_process.exec() in index.ts, which spawns a shell. A registry value containing shell metacharacters such as a semicolon, pipe, or command substitution executes arbitrary operating system commands with the privileges of the process running the audit.
    Added CVSS V4.0 AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:P/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
    Added CVSS V3.1 AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
    Added CWE CWE-78
    Added Reference https://github.com/jeemok/better-npm-audit
    Added Reference https://github.com/jeemok/better-npm-audit/blob/fd99a0f41ff4342b8a0a6fdbe5a17261de3d0544/index.ts#L34
    Added Reference https://github.com/jeemok/better-npm-audit/blob/fd99a0f41ff4342b8a0a6fdbe5a17261de3d0544/src/handlers/handleInput.ts#L30-L37
    Added Reference https://github.com/jeemok/better-npm-audit/issues/119
    Added Reference https://github.com/jeemok/better-npm-audit/pull/120
    Added Reference https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/better-npm-audit-os-command-injection-via-registry-flag
EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity being observed over the next 30 days. Following chart shows the EPSS score history of the vulnerability.