CVE-2023-29017 | vm2 Sandbox Escape vulnerability

Exp

vm2 is a sandbox that can run untrusted code with whitelisted Node's built-in modules. Prior to version 3.9.15, vm2 was not properly handling host objects passed to `Error.prepareStackTrace` in case of unhandled async errors. A threat actor could bypass the sandbox protections to gain remote code execution rights on the host running the sandbox. This vulnerability was patched in the release of version 3.9.15 of vm2. There are no known workarounds.

Published: 2023-04-06 Last update: 2024-11-21 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2023-29017 is rated High Exploit Risk (91.7/100): CVSS Critical severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 74.96%, 99th percentile). 2 public exploit reference(s) are indexed (Exploit-DB). EPSS rose +2.05% over the last day, indicating growing attacker interest. Public exploits are available—assess exposure, apply mitigations, and prioritize patching.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Public exploit references (Exploit-DB) for CVE-2023-29017

EDB-ID Source Kind Published Link
— nvd_ref exploit_tag Exploit-DB ↗
— nvd_ref exploit_tag Exploit-DB ↗

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2023-29017

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-05-28 72.91% 74.96% +2.05%
2 2026-05-22 74.96% 72.91% -2.05%
3 2026-04-28 — 74.96% —

Full EPSS history (46 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2023-29017

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
10.0 3.1 CRITICAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:C)
Breaking this can reach past the original component and bite other resources—bigger blast radius.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 3.9 6.0 [email protected]
9.8 3.1 CRITICAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 3.9 5.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2023-29017

GitHub Security Advisory for CVE-2023-29017

GHSA-7jxr-cg7f-gpgv · Severity: critical · Ecosystem: npm — vm2 vulnerable to sandbox escape

OS Trackers for CVE-2023-29017

vendor priority summary link
redhat critical — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2023-29017

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2023-29017

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
vm2_project vm2 < 3.9.15 cpe:2.3:a:vm2_project:vm2:*:*:*:*:*:node.js:*:*

References for CVE-2023-29017

cvelogic Threat Intelligence