Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2017-16098 is a denial-of-service issue in the Node.js charset module. A very large crafted input can make a regular expression run slowly. The cited description says roughly 50,000 characters caused about a two-second slowdown, and Node’s default header limit keeps the impact relatively low in typical builds.
Executive priority
Treat as routine dependency hygiene unless the affected parser is internet-exposed with unusually large accepted inputs. Prioritize confirmation and cleanup during normal patch cycles, not emergency response, based on the current source evidence.
Technical view
The issue is classified as CWE-400 resource consumption through regular expression denial of service in the charset node module. The source bundle names charset 1.0.0 and below, while the affected entry lists versions below 1.0.0, so version scope should be confirmed against maintainer sources.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely in Node.js applications that depend on the charset module and parse attacker-controlled header or content-type-like input. Systems with raised HTTP header size limits may have greater practical exposure than default Node configurations.
Exploitation context
The bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or cited evidence of active exploitation. The described effect requires large input and produces measurable slowdown rather than confirmed remote code execution or data compromise.
Researcher notes
Evidence is limited and the bundle has a version-range mismatch: description says 1.0.0 and below, affected data says below 1.0.0. Validate exact package metadata and maintainer guidance before closing findings or defining SLA.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory applications and lockfiles for the charset node module.
- Confirm the affected version range against the advisory and GitHub issue.
- Apply maintainer-recommended updates or remove the dependency if unused.
- Keep Node HTTP header-size limits at the smallest operationally safe value.
- Monitor vendor guidance if no fixed version is documented in your dependency source.
Validation and detection
- Check SBOMs and package lockfiles for charset dependency versions.
- Trace whether untrusted headers or content-type values reach charset parsing.
- Review Node builds for custom HTTP_MAX_HEADER_SIZE increases.
- Confirm there is no KEV or source-backed active exploitation claim.
- Document any accepted risk where exposure is internal-only or unreachable.
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
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ATT&CK lookup starting points
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CWE-400: Exact CWE lookup
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Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2017-16098 mapping review
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Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Unknown
- CVSS
- Not scored
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS and timeline data
No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://nodesecurity.io/advisories/524CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/node-modules/charset/issues/10CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Uncontrolled Resource Consumption
Uncontrolled Resource Consumption represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.