CVE-2025-24015

This affects AES-256-GCM and AES-128-GCM in Deno, introduced by commit 0d1beed. Specifically, the authentication tag is not being validated. This means tampered ciphertexts or incorrect keys might not be detected, which breaks the guarantees expected from AES-GCM. Older versions of Deno correctly threw errors in such cases, as does Node.js.

Without authentication tag verification, AES-GCM degrades to essentially CTR mode, removing integrity protection. Authenticated data set with set_aad is also affected, as it is incorporated into the GCM hash (ghash) but this too is not validated, rendering AAD checks ineffective.

PoC

import { Buffer } from "node:buffer";
import {
  createCipheriv,
  createDecipheriv,
  randomBytes,
  scrypt,
} from "node:crypto";

type Encrypted = {
  salt: string;
  iv: string;
  enc: string;
  authTag: string;
};

const deriveKey = (key: string, salt: Buffer) =>
  new Promise<Buffer>((res, rej) =>
    scrypt(key, salt, 32, (err, k) => {
      if (err) rej(err);
      else res(k);
    })
  );

async function encrypt(text: string, key: string): Promise<Encrypted> {
  const salt = randomBytes(32);
  const k = await deriveKey(key, salt);

  const iv = randomBytes(16);
  const enc = createCipheriv("aes-256-gcm", k, iv);
  const ciphertext = enc.update(text, "binary", "binary") + enc.final("binary");

  return {
    salt: salt.toString("binary"),
    iv: iv.toString("binary"),
    enc: ciphertext,
    authTag: enc.getAuthTag().toString("binary"),
  };
}

async function decrypt(enc: Encrypted, key: string) {
  const k = await deriveKey(key, Buffer.from(enc.salt, "binary"));
  const dec = createDecipheriv("aes-256-gcm", k, Buffer.from(enc.iv, "binary"));

  const out = dec.update(enc.enc, "binary", "binary");
  dec.setAuthTag(Buffer.from(enc.authTag, "binary"));
  return out + dec.final("binary");
}

const test = await encrypt("abcdefghi", "key");
test.enc = "";
console.log(await decrypt(test, "")); // no error

While discovered through experimentation, authentication failures that should raise errors may be silently ignored.

Kodem intelligence

1. What is CVE-2025-24015? CVE-2025-24015 is a high-severity security vulnerability in deno (rust), affecting versions >= 1.46.0, < 2.1.7. It is fixed in 2.1.7, 0.125.0.
2. Which packages are affected by CVE-2025-24015?
   • deno (rust) (versions >= 1.46.0, < 2.1.7)
   • deno_node (rust) (versions >= 0.102.0, < 0.125.0)
3. Is there a fix for CVE-2025-24015? Yes. CVE-2025-24015 is fixed in 2.1.7, 0.125.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
4. Is CVE-2025-24015 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2025-24015 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
5. What actually determines whether CVE-2025-24015 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.
6. How do I fix CVE-2025-24015?
   • Upgrade deno to 2.1.7 or later
   • Upgrade deno_node to 0.125.0 or later