CVE-2023-45133 — Babel is a compiler for writingJavaScript

Babel is a compiler for writingJavaScript. In `@babel/traverse` prior to versions 7.23.2 and 8.0.0-alpha.4 and all versions of `babel-traverse`, using Babel to compile code that was specifically crafted by an attacker can lead to arbitrary code execution during compilation, when

01What is this vulnerability?

Babel is a compiler for writingJavaScript. In `@babel/traverse` prior to versions 7.23.2 and 8.0.0-alpha.4 and all versions of `babel-traverse`, using Babel to compile code that was specifically crafted by an attacker can lead to arbitrary code execution during compilation, when using plugins that rely on the `path.evaluate()`or `path.evaluateTruthy()` internal Babel methods. Known affected…

02Affected products

Vendor	Product	Versions
babel	babel	< 7.23.2, >= 8.0.0-alpha.0, < 8.0.0-alpha.4

03Active exploitation status

Not currently listed on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog. EPSS is the best forward-looking signal — see the EPSS row above.

04Recommended remediation

• Patch to a fixed version listed in the vendor advisory (see references below).
• Mitigate with WAF rules, network egress filters, or feature flags where the patch is not yet available.
• Hunt historical logs for exploitation indicators — see Detection signatures below.

05Technical details

For the full vendor write-up, exploit chains, and reference implementations, see the references list in section 09.

06Detection signatures

Ask SARA in chat to draft a starting detection for this CVE in your stack of choice.

07Related CVEs

No directly-cited follow-up CVEs in the KB record for this advisory. The references list in section 09 carries the vendor cross-references.

08Timeline

• Published: 2023-10-12T16:17:08.624Z
• Last modified: 2025-02-13T17:13:48.413Z

09References

• github.com — https://github.com/babel/babel/security/advisories/GHSA-67hx-6x53-jw92
• github.com — https://github.com/babel/babel/pull/16033
• github.com — https://github.com/babel/babel/commit/b13376b346946e3f62fc0848c1d2a23223314c82
• github.com — https://github.com/babel/babel/releases/tag/v7.23.2
• github.com — https://github.com/babel/babel/releases/tag/v8.0.0-alpha.4
• www.debian.org — https://www.debian.org/security/2023/dsa-5528
• lists.debian.org — https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2023/10/msg00026.html