Summary
Nuxt has Client-Side Path Traversal in Nuxt Island Payload Revival
A client-side path traversal vulnerability in Nuxt's Island payload revival mechanism allowed attackers to manipulate client-side requests to different endpoints within the same application domain when specific prerendering conditions are met.
Technical Details
The vulnerability occurs in the client-side payload revival process (revive-payload.client.ts) where Nuxt Islands are automatically fetched when encountering serialized __nuxt_island objects. The issue affects the following flow:
- During prerendering, if an API endpoint returns user-controlled data containing a crafted
__nuxt_islandobject - This data gets serialized with
devalue.stringifyand stored in the prerendered page - When a client navigates to the prerendered page,
devalue.parsedeserializes the payload - The Island reviver attempts to fetch
/__nuxt_island/${key}.jsonwherekeycould contain path traversal sequences
Prerequisites for Exploitation
This vulnerability requires all of the following conditions:
- Prerendered pages: The application must use Nuxt's prerendering feature (
nitro.prerender) - Attacker-controlled API responses: The attacker must be able to control the response content of an API endpoint that is called during prerendering via
useFetch,useAsyncData, or similar composables - Client-side navigation: A user must navigate to the prerendered page (not during initial SSR hydration)
Attack Scenario
// Malicious API response during prerendering
{
"__nuxt_island": {
"key": "../../../../internal/service",
"params": { "action": "probe" }
}
}
This could cause the client to make requests to /__nuxt_island/../../../../internal/service.json if path traversal is not properly handled by the server.
Impact Assessment
- Limited Impact: The vulnerability has a low severity due to the highly specific prerequisites
- No Direct Data Exfiltration: The vulnerability does not directly expose sensitive data
- Client-Side Only: Requests originate from the client, not the server
Mitigation
Action Required:
- Update to Nuxt 3.19.0+ or 4.1.0+ immediately
- Review any prerendered pages that fetch external or user-controlled data
Temporary Workarounds (if immediate update is not possible):
- Disable prerendering for pages that fetch user-controlled data
- Implement strict input validation on API endpoints used during prerendering
- Use allowlists for API response structures during prerendering
Fix Details
The fix implemented validation for Island keys in revive-payload.server.ts:
- Island keys must match the pattern
/^[a-z][a-z\d-]*_[a-z\d]+$/i - Maximum length of 100 characters
- Prevents path traversal and special characters
Impact
Input manipulates file paths to reach files outside the intended directory, such as configuration or credential files. Typical impact: unauthorized file read or write outside the intended directory.
CVE-2025-59414 has a CVSS score of 3.1 (Low). The vector is network-reachable, no privileges required, and user interaction required. 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 (3.19.0, 4.1.0); 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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nuxt to 3.19.0 or later; nuxt to 4.1.0 or later
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Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2025-59414? CVE-2025-59414 is a low-severity path traversal vulnerability in nuxt (npm), affecting versions >= 3.6.0, < 3.19.0. It is fixed in 3.19.0, 4.1.0. Input manipulates file paths to reach files outside the intended directory, such as configuration or credential files.
- How severe is CVE-2025-59414? CVE-2025-59414 has a CVSS score of 3.1 (Low). 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 are affected by CVE-2025-59414? nuxt (npm) versions >= 3.6.0, < 3.19.0 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2025-59414? Yes. CVE-2025-59414 is fixed in 3.19.0, 4.1.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2025-59414 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2025-59414 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-2025-59414 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-2025-59414?
- Upgrade
nuxtto 3.19.0 or later - Upgrade
nuxtto 4.1.0 or later
- Upgrade