@babel/runtime versions 7.14.6 and 7.14.5 are closely related releases of Babel's essential modular runtime helpers, designed to support transformed code in various JavaScript environments. Both versions share the same core purpose: providing pre-compiled, reusable functions that implement language features not natively supported by older browsers or JavaScript engines. This avoids code duplication and reduces the final bundle size of applications using Babel for transpilation. Developers relying on Babel to achieve cross-browser compatibility or utilize modern JavaScript syntax will find this package crucial.
The primary difference between the two versions lies in their release dates and potentially very subtle internal changes reflected in the unpackedSize. Version 7.14.6 was released on June 14, 2021, five days after version 7.14.5, released on June 9, 2021. While both depend on regenerator-runtime version ^0.13.4, the unpacked size of version 7.14.6 is slightly larger (143666 bytes) than that of 7.14.5 (143642 bytes), suggesting minor bug fixes, performance improvements, or internal adjustments.
For developers, if you are using version 7.14.5 it is recommended to upgrade to 7.14.6, as it likely incorporates improvements and fixes. The absence of breaking changes between minor versions indicates a safe and beneficial upgrade. Staying up-to-date with the latest minor version ensures access to the most optimized and stable runtime helpers, ultimately contributing to a smoother and more efficient application. Always refer to the official Babel release notes for a comprehensive list of changes.
All the vulnerabilities related to the version 7.14.6 of the package
Babel has inefficient RegExp complexity in generated code with .replace when transpiling named capturing groups
When using Babel to compile regular expression named capturing groups, Babel will generate a polyfill for the .replace method that has quadratic complexity on some specific replacement pattern strings (i.e. the second argument passed to .replace).
Your generated code is vulnerable if all the following conditions are true:
.replace method on a regular expression that contains named capturing groups.replaceIf you are using @babel/preset-env with the targets option, the transform that injects the vulnerable code is automatically enabled if:
You can verify what transforms @babel/preset-env is using by enabling the debug option.
This problem has been fixed in @babel/helpers and @babel/runtime 7.26.10 and 8.0.0-alpha.17, please upgrade. It's likely that you do not directly depend on @babel/helpers, and instead you depend on @babel/core (which itself depends on @babel/helpers). Upgrading to @babel/core 7.26.10 is not required, but it guarantees that you are on a new enough @babel/helpers version.
Please note that just updating your Babel dependencies is not enough: you will also need to re-compile your code.
If you are passing user-provided strings as the second argument of .replace on regular expressions that contain named capturing groups, validate the input and make sure it does not contain the substring $< if it's then not followed by > (possibly with other characters in between).
This vulnerability was reported and fixed in https://github.com/babel/babel/pull/17173.