music-metadata: uncatchable process crash parsing a crafted `.dsf` (residual of GHSA-v6c2-xwv6-8xf7)
Summary
DsfParser.parseChunks skips an unrecognised chunk's payload with an un-awaited call:
this.tokenizer.ignore(Number(chunkHeader.size) - ChunkHeader.len); // lib/dsf/DsfParser.js:51 — no await
ChunkHeader.len is 12. A crafted .dsf chunk with id != 'fmt ' and size in 0..11 makes the
argument negative; strtok3 (≥ 10.3.5) throws RangeError on a negative ignore. Because the call
is fire-and-forget, the rejection is detached from the parseBuffer() promise chain → unhandled
rejection → Node's default (≥ 15) crashes the process — after parseBuffer() already
resolved, so a caller's try/catch catches nothing and is still taken down.
Residual of GHSA-v6c2-xwv6-8xf7: the ASF site was fixed in 11.12.3 (size validation) and strtok3
now throws on negative ignore; the DSF site was never validated, and its missing await
escalates that throw into an uncatchable crash.
Root cause (lib/dsf/DsfParser.js:34-56)
while (bytesRemaining >= ChunkHeader.len) { // ChunkHeader.len = 12
const chunkHeader = await this.tokenizer.readToken(ChunkHeader); // { id, size }
switch (chunkHeader.id) {
case 'fmt ': { ...; return; }
default: this.tokenizer.ignore(Number(chunkHeader.size) - ChunkHeader.len); break; // size<12 -> negative, no await
}
bytesRemaining -= chunkHeader.size;
}
strtok3 AbstractTokenizer.ignore (L78-79): if (length < 0) throw new RangeError('ignore length must be ≥ 0 bytes');
Steps to reproduce
repro/ — public API only, Node's default unhandled-rejection mode, try/catch around the parse:
npm install && node poc.mjs
Confirmed on 11.14.0:
[app] parseBuffer() RESOLVED — the caller saw no error to catch.
RangeError: ignore length must be ≥ 0 bytes
at DsfParser.parseChunks (.../lib/dsf/DsfParser.js:51)
<process exits non-zero — the "process survived" line never prints>
Impact
DoS: a single crafted .dsf (or any file with the DSD magic) crashes the Node process of any
app parsing untrusted audio with music-metadata (2.2M weekly downloads). The crash bypasses the
caller's error handling, so even apps that correctly try/catch per-file parsing are killed — one
malicious upload can take down a shared server/worker.
Remediation
Add await on line 51 (makes the RangeError a catchable parse error), and validate
chunkHeader.size >= ChunkHeader.len before the skip (as the ASF fix did; also guards the loop
counter). Audit other parsers for un-awaited tokenizer.ignore()/readToken().
Scope / honesty
Requires the DSF path (a DSD -magic file — normal auto-detection). Relies on Node's default
unhandled-rejection mode (throw, default since Node 15); the point is that the standard defensive
per-parse try/catch does not protect against it. Crash (availability), not disclosure/RCE.
Negatives confirmed alongside: ASF infinite loop fixed; negative-ignore infinite-loop class
closed at strtok3; unbounded allocation bounded by strtok3's read bound-check.
Credits
Issue also reported by @ryu7eroo
Affected software
Click a technology to see all vulnerabilities affecting it.
| Platform | Package | Vulnerable versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| npm package | music-metadata | < 11.15.0 | 11.15.0 |
References
- https://github.com/Borewit/music-metadata/security/advisories/GHSA-8j4c-6x6g-rq3j
- https://github.com/Borewit/music-metadata/pull/2700
- https://github.com/Borewit/music-metadata/commit/e7fc27a96e789d41ece41fdac590fc7618274a41
- https://github.com/Borewit/music-metadata
- https://github.com/Borewit/music-metadata/releases/tag/v11.15.0
- CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H- Weakness (CWE)
CWE-248, CWE-400- Platform
- npm
- Package
music-metadata- Disclosed
- 08.10.2026
- Updated
- 11.10.2026 10:22
Sources and licenses
OSV / GitHub Advisory Database - GHSA-8j4c-6x6g-rq3j - CC BY 4.0
Vulnerability history: music-metadata
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
- 6
- First → latest
- 03.2026 10.2026
- Without a fix
- 0
- Exploited in attacks
- 0
Severity breakdown
- High 1
- Medium 5
Disclosures per year
- 2026: 6
-
music-metadata: uncatchable process crash parsing a crafted `.dsf` (residual of GHSA-v6c2-xwv6-8xf7) this entry
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