Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime in detect-character-encoding
Impact
In detect-character-encoding v0.3.0 and earlier, allocated memory is not released.
Patches
The problem has been patched in detect-character-encoding v0.3.1.
CVSS score
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H/RL:O/RC:C
Base Score: 7.5 (High) Temporal Score: 7.2 (High)
Since detect-character-encoding is a library, the scoring is based on the “reasonable worst-case implementation scenario”, namely, using detect-character-encoding in a program accessible over the internet which becomes unavailable when running out of memory. Depending on your specific implementation, the vulnerability’s severity in your program may be different.
Proof of concept
const express = require("express");
const detectCharacterEncoding = require("detect-character-encoding");
const app = express();
app.get("/", (req, res) => {
detectCharacterEncoding(Buffer.from("foo"));
res.end();
});
app.listen(3000);hey -n 1000000 http://localhost:3000 (hey) causes the Node.js process to consume more and more memory.
References
Affected software
Click a technology to see all vulnerabilities affecting it.
| Platform | Package | Vulnerable versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| npm package | detect-character-encoding | < 0.3.1 | 0.3.1 |
References
- https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding/security/advisories/GHSA-5rwj-j5m3-3chj
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-39176
- https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding/pull/6
- https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding/commit/d44356927b92e3b13e178071bf6d7c671766f588
- https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding
- https://github.com/sonicdoe/detect-character-encoding/releases/tag/v0.3.1
- CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H- Weakness (CWE)
CWE-401- Platform
- npm
- Package
detect-character-encoding- Disclosed
- 01.09.2021
- Updated
- 11.10.2026 10:22
Sources and licenses
OSV / GitHub Advisory Database - GHSA-5rwj-j5m3-3chj - CC BY 4.0
Vulnerability history: detect-character-encoding
All published vulnerabilities of this package (npm package), newest first. Shows whether this is a one-off slip or a package that needs watching.
- Total entries
- 2
- First → latest
- 08.2021 09.2021
- Without a fix
- 0
- Exploited in attacks
- 0
Severity breakdown
- High 2
Disclosures per year
- 2021: 2
- 2022: 0
- 2023: 0
- 2024: 0
- 2025: 0
- 2026: 0
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Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime in detect-character-encoding this entry
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