# CVE-2017-16222: Directory Traversal in elding

> An attacker can read arbitrary files with extensions from the server filesystem via directory traversal in the elding web server library.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.3 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 7 Jun 2018
- **Updated:** 17 Sep 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-rp28-29ch-gh92

## What is CVE-2017-16222?

CVE-2017-16222 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in HackerOne elding node module, published on 7 Jun 2018. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

elding is a simple web server. elding is vulnerable to a directory traversal issue, allowing an attacker to access the filesystem by placing "../" in the url. The files accessible, however, are limited to files with a file extension. Sending a GET request to /../../../etc/passwd, for example, will return a 404 on etc/passwd/index.js.

Weakness: CWE-22 (Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2017-16222?

2 open source packages ship an affected version, including elding. It affects 1 product.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `elding` | npm | All versions to 1.0.0 | None |
| `elding` | npm | All versions to 1.0.0 | None |

Products: Elding Project Elding.

## How do I fix CVE-2017-16222?

No fix has been published for CVE-2017-16222 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2017-16222 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-16222 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2017-16222 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2017-16222 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in HackerOne elding node module, published on 7 Jun 2018. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-16222 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- elding (npm): affected all versions up to 1.0.0; no fix listed
- elding (npm): affected all versions up to 1.0.0; no fix listed

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-16222/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-16222/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-16222
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-16222
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2017-16222

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-16222/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.