Webpack version 4.20.2 is a minor patch release following closely on the heels of version 4.20.1. Both versions serve the core purpose of Webpack: bundling JavaScript and other assets for browser deployment. A developer aiming to create optimized web applications with code splitting, loader support for various file types (like CSS, images, and more), and modular architecture will find value in either of these versions.
While the descriptions and core functionalities remain identical, the key lies in their specific builds. Examining the provided data, the dist section reveals a slight difference in unpackedSize. Version 4.20.2 has an unpacked size of 1305249 bytes, whereas version 4.20.1 is slightly smaller at 1304842 bytes. Although seemingly minor, this disparity suggests internal adjustments, potentially bug fixes, or very slight performance tweaks.
Developers should always prioritize the latest patch version (in this case 4.20.2) to benefit from any bug fixes, security enhancements and, subtle refinements over the previous one. Checking the changelog or release notes on the official webpack repository would offer the most precise understanding of the changes introduced within this specific patch, allowing for a more informed decision regarding version selection for their projects.
All the vulnerabilities related to the version 4.20.2 of the package
Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS) in micromatch
The NPM package micromatch prior to version 4.0.8 is vulnerable to Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS). The vulnerability occurs in micromatch.braces() in index.js because the pattern .* will greedily match anything. By passing a malicious payload, the pattern matching will keep backtracking to the input while it doesn't find the closing bracket. As the input size increases, the consumption time will also increase until it causes the application to hang or slow down. There was a merged fix but further testing shows the issue persisted prior to https://github.com/micromatch/micromatch/pull/266. This issue should be mitigated by using a safe pattern that won't start backtracking the regular expression due to greedy matching.
Uncontrolled resource consumption in braces
The NPM package braces fails to limit the number of characters it can handle, which could lead to Memory Exhaustion. In lib/parse.js, if a malicious user sends "imbalanced braces" as input, the parsing will enter a loop, which will cause the program to start allocating heap memory without freeing it at any moment of the loop. Eventually, the JavaScript heap limit is reached, and the program will crash.
Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS)
npm ssri 5.2.2-6.0.1 and 7.0.0-8.0.0, processes SRIs using a regular expression which is vulnerable to a denial of service. Malicious SRIs could take an extremely long time to process, leading to denial of service. This issue only affects consumers using the strict option.
Cross-Site Scripting in serialize-javascript
Versions of serialize-javascript prior to 2.1.1 are vulnerable to Cross-Site Scripting (XSS). The package fails to sanitize serialized regular expressions. This vulnerability does not affect Node.js applications.
Upgrade to version 2.1.1 or later.
Insecure serialization leading to RCE in serialize-javascript
serialize-javascript prior to 3.1.0 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary code via the function "deleteFunctions" within "index.js".
An object such as {"foo": /1"/, "bar": "a\"@__R-<UID>-0__@"} was serialized as {"foo": /1"/, "bar": "a\/1"/}, which allows an attacker to escape the bar key. This requires the attacker to control the values of both foo and bar and guess the value of <UID>. The UID has a keyspace of approximately 4 billion making it a realistic network attack.
