Prototype Pollution in hoek
Versions of hoek prior to 4.2.1 and 5.0.3 are vulnerable to prototype pollution.
The merge function, and the applyToDefaults and applyToDefaultsWithShallow functions which leverage merge behind the scenes, are vulnerable to a prototype pollution attack when provided an unvalidated payload created from a JSON string containing the __proto__ property.
This can be demonstrated like so:
var Hoek = require('hoek');
var malicious_payload = '{"__proto__":{"oops":"It works !"}}';
var a = {};
console.log("Before : " + a.oops);
Hoek.merge({}, JSON.parse(malicious_payload));
console.log("After : " + a.oops);This type of attack can be used to overwrite existing properties causing a potential denial of service.
Recommendation
Update to version 4.2.1, 5.0.3 or later.
Affected software
Click a technology to see all vulnerabilities affecting it.
| Platform | Package | Vulnerable versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| npm package | hoek | >= 5.0.0, < 5.0.3, < 4.2.1 | 5.0.3, 4.2.1 |
References
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-3728
- https://github.com/hapijs/hoek/commit/32ed5c9413321fbc37da5ca81a7cbab693786dee
- https://github.com/hapijs/hoek/commit/5aed1a8c4a3d55722d1c799f2368857bf418d6df
- https://hackerone.com/reports/310439
- https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2018:1263
- https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2018:1264
- https://github.com/hapijs/hoek
- https://snyk.io/vuln/npm:hoek:20180212
- https://web.archive.org/web/20200227131737/https://www.securityfocus.com/bid/103108
- CVSS vector
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H- Weakness (CWE)
CWE-1321- Platform
- npm
- Package
hoek- Disclosed
- 26.04.2018
- Updated
- 11.10.2026 10:22
Sources and licenses
OSV / GitHub Advisory Database - GHSA-jp4x-w63m-7wgm - CC BY 4.0
Vulnerability history: hoek
All published vulnerabilities of this package (npm package), newest first. Shows whether this is a one-off slip or a package that needs watching.
- Total entries
- 2
- First → latest
- 04.2018 09.2022
- Without a fix
- 1
- Exploited in attacks
- 0
Severity breakdown
- High 2
Disclosures per year
- 2018: 1
- 2019: 0
- 2020: 0
- 2021: 0
- 2022: 1
- 2023: 0
- 2024: 0
- 2025: 0
- 2026: 0
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Prototype Pollution in hoek this entry
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