CVE-2026-53633
Description
A flaw was found in Vitest Browser Mode, a component of the Vitest testing framework. The cdp() API exposed raw Chrome DevTools Protocol (CDP) methods without proper security restrictions. This vulnerability allows a remote attacker, with access to browser API metadata, to leverage CDP functions like Page.setDownloadBehavior and Runtime.evaluate. This can lead to overwriting configuration files and executing arbitrary Node.js code, resulting in remote code execution.
Statement
Red Hat has assessed this flaw against its shipping products. The vulnerability requires Vitest Browser Mode (the @vitest/browser package) to be installed AND explicitly enabled (browser.enabled: true), paired with a CDP-capable browser provider such as Playwright Chromium, an actively running test session, and the Browser Mode API server exposed on a network-reachable interface (--browser.api.host=0.0.0.0). It does not affect the core vitest test runner used without Browser Mode. Only one Red Hat shipping product, Red Hat Trusted Artifact Signer (RHTAS) console UI, lists @vitest/browser as a development dependency, used solely to run its own component test suite. Red Hat has confirmed that this product's test configuration does not enable Browser Mode (browser.enabled is not set to true), no CI invocation passes the required --browser flag, no CDP-capable provider package is installed, and the @vitest/browser package is excluded from the final shipped container image (present only in a discarded multi-stage build layer). No Red Hat product installs, enables, or exposes Vitest Browser Mode's CDP proxy in production.
Mitigation
No mitigation is required for Red Hat shipping products, as Vitest Browser Mode and its CDP proxy feature are not enabled or reachable in any Red Hat product's build, test, or runtime configuration. Development teams that do enable Vitest Browser Mode with a CDP-capable provider (Playwright or WebdriverIO) should avoid exposing the Browser Mode API server to untrusted networks (do not set --browser.api.host=0.0.0.0 or equivalent) and should upgrade to @vitest/browser 3.2.5, 4.1.8, 5.0.0-beta.4, or later, and vite-plus 0.1.24 or later.
Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) Score Details
Info alert:Important note
CVSS scores for open source components depend on vendor-specific factors (e.g. version or build chain). Therefore, Red Hat's score and impact rating can be different from NVD and other vendors. Red Hat remains the authoritative CVE Naming Authority (CNA) source for its products and services (see Red Hat classifications).
The following CVSS metrics and score provided are preliminary and subject to review.
CVSS v3 Score Breakdown
| Red Hat | NVD | cve.org | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Score | 8.1 | N/A | 9.8 |
| Attack Vector | Network | N/A | Network |
| Attack Complexity | High | N/A | Low |
| Privileges Required | None | N/A | None |
| User Interaction | None | N/A | None |
| Scope | Unchanged | N/A | Unchanged |
| Confidentiality | High | N/A | High |
| Integrity Impact | High | N/A | High |
| Availability Impact | High | N/A | High |
Vector
Red Hat: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
cve.org: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Understanding the Weakness (CWE)
Access Control
Technical Impact: Bypass Protection Mechanism
In some cases, injectable code controls authentication; this may lead to a remote vulnerability.
Access Control
Technical Impact: Gain Privileges or Assume Identity
Injected code can access resources that the attacker is directly prevented from accessing.
Integrity,Confidentiality,Availability
Technical Impact: Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands
When a product allows a user's input to contain code syntax, it might be possible for an attacker to craft the code in such a way that it will alter the intended control flow of the product. As a result, code injection can often result in the execution of arbitrary code. Code injection attacks can also lead to loss of data integrity in nearly all cases, since the control-plane data injected is always incidental to data recall or writing.
Non-Repudiation
Technical Impact: Hide Activities
Often the actions performed by injected control code are unlogged.
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