What is CVE-2024-31217?

CVE-2024-31217 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in @strapi/plugin-upload (npm), affecting versions < 4.22.0. It is fixed in 4.22.0.

How severe is CVE-2024-31217?

CVE-2024-31217 has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium). 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 @strapi/plugin-upload are affected by CVE-2024-31217?

@strapi/plugin-upload (npm) versions < 4.22.0 is affected.

Is there a fix for CVE-2024-31217?

Yes. CVE-2024-31217 is fixed in 4.22.0. Upgrade to this version or later.

Is CVE-2024-31217 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2024-31217 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.

What actually determines whether CVE-2024-31217 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.

CVE-2024-31217 in @strapi/plugin-upload

Q: How severe is CVE-2024-31217?

CVE-2024-31217 has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium). 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.

Q: Which versions of @strapi/plugin-upload are affected by CVE-2024-31217?

@strapi/plugin-upload (npm) versions < 4.22.0 is affected.

Q: Is there a fix for CVE-2024-31217?

Yes. CVE-2024-31217 is fixed in 4.22.0. Upgrade to this version or later.

Q: Is CVE-2024-31217 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2024-31217 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.

Q: What actually determines whether CVE-2024-31217 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.

Q: How do I fix CVE-2024-31217?

Upgrade @strapi/plugin-upload to 4.22.0 or later.

Summary

@strapi/plugin-upload has a Denial-of-Service via Improper Exception Handling

A Denial-of-Service was found in the media upload process causing the server to crash without restarting, affecting either development and production environments.

Details

Usually, errors in the application cause it to log the error and keep it running for other clients. This behavior, in contrast, stops the server execution, making it unavailable for any clients until it's manually restarted.

PoC

Due to a bug in what we believe to be Burp’s decoding system, we couldn’t produce a valid file to easily reproduce the vulnerability. Instead, the issue can be reproduced by following these steps:

Configure Burp’s proxy between a browser and a Strapi server
Log in and upload an image through the Media Library page while having Burp’s interceptor turned on
After capturing the upload POST request in Burp, add %00 at the end of the file extension from the Content-Disposition, in the filename parameter (See reference image 1 below)
Using the cursor, select the added %00 and right-click it. Click in Convert selection > URL > URL decode to transform the selected text into a null byte
Forward the modified request. The server should print an error and crash with the error ERR_INVALID_ARG_VALUE (See reference log 1 below)

By following the data flow, we reached the line of code where we believe the DoS is being caused.
The simpler way of fixing this vulnerability seems to be avoiding the error thrown by whitelisting the characters used in the extension.

Reference Image 1

Reference Log 1

[2024-03-22 10:23:42.629] http: POST /upload (22 ms) 400
node:internal/fs/utils:379
  const err = new ERR_INVALID_ARG_VALUE(
              ^

TypeError [ERR_INVALID_ARG_VALUE]: The argument 'path' must be a string, Uint8Array, or URL without null bytes. Received '/mnt/storage/Development/GHSA-pm9q-xj9p-96pm/public/uploads/replaceme_png_88efe6a165.png\x00'
    at new WriteStream (node:internal/fs/streams:340:5)
    at Object.createWriteStream (node:fs:3123:10)
    at /mnt/storage/Development/GHSA-pm9q-xj9p-96pm/node_modules/@strapi/provider-upload-local/dist/index.js:71:33
    at new Promise (<anonymous>)
    at Object.uploadStream (/mnt/storage/Development/GHSA-pm9q-xj9p-96pm/node_modules/@strapi/provider-upload-local/dist/index.js:68:16)
    at Object.uploadStream (/mnt/storage/Development/GHSA-pm9q-xj9p-96pm/node_modules/@strapi/plugin-upload/server/register.js:80:35)
    at Object.upload (/mnt/storage/Development/GHSA-pm9q-xj9p-96pm/node_modules/@strapi/plugin-upload/server/services/provider.js:16:46)
    at Object.uploadImage (/mnt/storage/Development/GHSA-pm9q-xj9p-96pm/node_modules/@strapi/plugin-upload/server/services/upload.js:220:48) {
  code: 'ERR_INVALID_ARG_VALUE'
}

Impact

Denial-of-Service occurs when a service becomes unavailable for users or other services.
By sending a specially-crafted request, the server crashes without restarting. The entire server crashes with the thrown error instead of crashing only the single request and returning error 500 to the user.
Any user with access to the file upload functionality is able to exploit this vulnerability, affecting applications running in both development mode and production mode as well.

CVE-2024-31217 has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium). The vector is network-reachable, low 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 (4.22.0); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Affected versions

@strapi/plugin-upload (< 4.22.0)

Security releases

@strapi/plugin-upload → 4.22.0 (npm)

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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Remediation advice

Upgrade @strapi/plugin-upload to 4.22.0 or later to resolve this vulnerability.

Kodem Kai can prioritize this vulnerability in your dependency tree and generate a fix recommendation.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2024-31217? CVE-2024-31217 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in @strapi/plugin-upload (npm), affecting versions < 4.22.0. It is fixed in 4.22.0.
How severe is CVE-2024-31217? CVE-2024-31217 has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium). 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 @strapi/plugin-upload are affected by CVE-2024-31217? @strapi/plugin-upload (npm) versions < 4.22.0 is affected.
Is there a fix for CVE-2024-31217? Yes. CVE-2024-31217 is fixed in 4.22.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
Is CVE-2024-31217 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2024-31217 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-2024-31217 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-2024-31217? Upgrade @strapi/plugin-upload to 4.22.0 or later.