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Critical

i18next-fs-backend: Prototype pollution via crafted missing-key string

Type: advisorySources: OSV

Versions prior to 2.6.6 are vulnerable to prototype pollution via crafted missing-key strings when used to persist missing translation keys (e.g. via i18next-http-middleware's missingKeyHandler exposed to untrusted input). Backend.writeFile() splits each queued missing-key string on the configured keySeparator (default .) before calling the internal setPath() walker. The walker (getLastOfPath in lib/utils.js) did not guard against unsafe segments, so a key like "__proto__.polluted" was split into ["__proto__", "polluted"] and walked straight into Object.prototype, allowing an attacker to write arbitrary properties onto the global object prototype. Depending on the host application, polluted prototype properties may cause crashes, corrupted translation behaviour, configuration poisoning, or bypasses of property-based security checks. Applications are affected only if the missingKeyHandler (or another route that forwards untrusted request bodies to i18next.t(..., { ... }) with saveMissing: true) is reachable by untrusted users and the default behaviour of splitting missing-key strings on keySeparator is in use (i.e. keySeparator is not false). Apps that do not expose missing-key persistence to untrusted input are not directly affected through this attack path. This issue has been fixed in version 2.6.6. If developers using the library are unable to upgrade immediately, they should take the following precautions: do not expose i18next-http-middleware's missingKeyHandler to untru

Products
Not specified
Affected versions
Not specified
Fixed versions
Not specified
CVEs
CVE-2026-48713
Confirmed fixed CVEs
Not specified
Updated in this feed
4 Nov 2026, 03:51 UTC · Revision 1

Source evidence

i18next-fs-backend: Prototype pollution via crafted missing-key string

core-osv · Original source

Published 15 Jun 2026, 20:31 UTC

Versions prior to 2.6.6 are vulnerable to prototype pollution via crafted missing-key strings when used to persist missing translation keys (e.g. via i18next-http-middleware's missingKeyHandler exposed to untrusted input). Backend.writeFile() splits each queued missing-key string on the configured keySeparator (default .) before calling the internal setPath() walker. The walker (getLastOfPath in lib/utils.js) did not guard against unsafe segments, so a key like "__proto__.polluted" was split into ["__proto__", "polluted"] and walked straight into Object.prototype, allowing an attacker to write arbitrary properties onto the global object prototype. Depending on the host application, polluted prototype properties may cause crashes, corrupted translation behaviour, configuration poisoning, or bypasses of property-based security checks. Applications are affected only if the missingKeyHandler (or another route that forwards untrusted request bodies to i18next.t(..., { ... }) with saveMissing: true) is reachable by untrusted users and the default behaviour of splitting missing-key strings on keySeparator is in use (i.e. keySeparator is not false). Apps that do not expose missing-key persistence to untrusted input are not directly affected through this attack path. This issue has been fixed in version 2.6.6. If developers using the library are unable to upgrade immediately, they should take the following precautions: do not expose i18next-http-middleware's missingKeyHandler to untru

osv:CVE-2026-48713
Complete source record
{
  "id": "5a17b6a36dc4ad38f6b4bafccfaca854b43e0026079eab5e9b0473a9f98b921d",
  "url": "https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-48713",
  "method": "structured",
  "payload": {
    "kind": "advisory",
    "title": "i18next-fs-backend: Prototype pollution via crafted missing-key string",
    "summary": "Versions prior to 2.6.6 are vulnerable to prototype pollution via crafted missing-key strings when used to persist missing translation keys (e.g. via i18next-http-middleware's missingKeyHandler exposed to untrusted input). Backend.writeFile() splits each queued missing-key string on the configured keySeparator (default .) before calling the internal setPath() walker. The walker (getLastOfPath in lib/utils.js) did not guard against unsafe segments, so a key like \"__proto__.polluted\" was split into [\"__proto__\", \"polluted\"] and walked straight into Object.prototype, allowing an attacker to write arbitrary properties onto the global object prototype. Depending on the host application, polluted prototype properties may cause crashes, corrupted translation behaviour, configuration poisoning, or bypasses of property-based security checks. Applications are affected only if the missingKeyHandler (or another route that forwards untrusted request bodies to i18next.t(..., { ... }) with saveMissing: true) is reachable by untrusted users and the default behaviour of splitting missing-key strings on keySeparator is in use (i.e. keySeparator is not false). Apps that do not expose missing-key persistence to untrusted input are not directly affected through this attack path. This issue has been fixed in version 2.6.6. If developers using the library are unable to upgrade immediately, they should take the following precautions: do not expose i18next-http-middleware's missingKeyHandler to untru",
    "evidence": "osv:CVE-2026-48713",
    "products": [],
    "severity": "critical",
    "structured": {
      "id": "CVE-2026-48713",
      "aliases": [
        "CVE-2026-48713",
        "GHSA-2933-q333-qg83"
      ],
      "metrics": [
        {
          "type": "CVSS_V3",
          "score": "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H"
        }
      ],
      "affected": [
        {
          "ranges": [
            {
              "repo": "https://github.com/i18next/i18next-fs-backend",
              "type": "GIT",
              "events": [
                {
                  "introduced": "0"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "0fff98b0877afdf0e2b857384bf85ac77c09a5e2"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "3ab0448087da6935a40117f904b7457281f963f4"
                }
              ],
              "database_specific": {
                "extracted_events": [
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                    "range": [
                      {
                        "introduced": "0"
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                      {
                        "fixed": "2.6.6"
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                    "source": "CPE_RANGE"
                  },
                  {
                    "range": [
                      {
                        "fixed": "3ab0448087da6935a40117f904b7457281f963f4"
                      }
                    ],
                    "source": "REFERENCES_COMMIT"
                  }
                ]
              }
            }
          ],
          "versions": [
            "v2.6.5",
            "v2.6.4",
            "v2.6.3",
            "v2.6.2",
            "v2.6.1",
            "v2.6.0",
            "v2.5.0",
            "v2.4.0",
            "v2.3.2",
            "v2.3.1",
            "v2.3.0",
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            "v2.1.5",
            "v2.1.4",
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            "v2.1.2",
            "v2.1.1",
            "v2.1.0",
            "v2.0.1",
            "v2.0.0",
            "v1.2.0",
            "v1.1.5",
            "v1.1.4",
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            "v1.1.2",
            "v1.1.1",
            "v1.1.0",
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            "v1.0.4",
            "v1.0.3",
            "v1.0.2",
            "v1.0.1",
            "v1.0.0"
          ],
          "database_specific": {
            "source": "https://storage.googleapis.com/cve-osv-conversion/osv-output/CVE-2026-48713.json"
          }
        }
      ],
      "modified": "2026-10-28T02:30:32.835359416Z",
      "provider": "osv",
      "references": [
        "https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/tree/main/cves/2026/48xxx/CVE-2026-48713.json",
        "https://github.com/i18next/i18next-fs-backend/security/advisories/GHSA-2933-q333-qg83",
        "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-48713",
        "https://github.com/i18next/i18next-fs-backend/commit/3ab0448087da6935a40117f904b7457281f963f4"
      ],
      "provider_metadata": {
        "cwe_ids": [
          "CWE-1321"
        ],
        "cna_assigner": "GitHub_M",
        "osv_generated_from": "https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/tree/main/cves/2026/48xxx/CVE-2026-48713.json"
      }
    },
    "related_cves": [
      {
        "value": "CVE-2026-48713",
        "evidence": "/id"
      }
    ],
    "security_relevant": true,
    "severity_evidence": "/severity/0/score"
  },
  "source_id": "core-osv",
  "document_id": 500122,
  "published_at": "2026-06-15T20:31:53.929+00:00"
}