CVE-2024-4068: 
JavaScript vulnerability analysis and mitigation

The NPM package braces, versions prior to 3.0.3, contains a vulnerability that fails to limit the number of characters it can handle, potentially leading to Memory Exhaustion. This vulnerability is tracked as CVE-2024-4068 and was discovered in early 2024 (Checkmarx).

The vulnerability exists in lib/parse.js where if a malicious user sends "imbalanced braces" as input, the parsing will enter a loop that continuously allocates heap memory without freeing it. This continues until the JavaScript heap limit is reached, causing the program to crash. The vulnerability has been assigned a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H (NVD).

When exploited, this vulnerability can lead to Memory Exhaustion and eventual program crash, resulting in a Denial of Service (DoS) condition. The impact is primarily on the availability of the system, with no direct effect on confidentiality or integrity (Checkmarx).

The vulnerability has been fixed in version 3.0.3 of the braces package. The fix includes reducing the default maxLength to 10,000 characters, which provides adequate protection against memory exhaustion attacks while maintaining functionality for legitimate use cases (GitHub PR).

The vulnerability sparked significant discussion in the open-source community, particularly regarding the balance between security and practical usability. The project maintainer noted that while the vulnerability was serious, it primarily affected development dependencies rather than runtime environments (GitHub Issue).