nvm install --offline installs a cached tarball that previously failed checksum verification
Written by anthropic/claude-haiku-5.5 from the sources below. Verify against them.
- Exploited
- No known exploitation
- Fix
- Fixed in 0.41.0
- Who is exposed
- Not reported
Do first: Upgrade to a fixed version: 0.41.0.
- Exploitation?/40Exploitation: unknown (data gap). No CISA SSVC exploitation rating yet
- Exposure7/25Reachable over the network without a login · Data gap: No advisory context yet
- Reach?/20Reach: unknown (data gap). No tracked technology or package matched
- Severity2.1/10CVSS 2.1
- No patch0/5No signal
What would change the score
- Would score about 64 if added to CISA KEV
- Would score about 59 if CISA's SSVC rates exploitation active
- Would score about 24 if advisories confirm default setups are exposed
CVE-2026-121750 is not in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog. No public exploit code is tracked. It is rated CVSS 2.1 (low) and affects nvm; fixed in 0.41.0.
- Last modified
- Where the record stands: published, rejected by its publisher, or superseded by another id.What do these mean? →
- Published
- Whether CISA lists it in its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog: proof that attackers are using it.What do these mean? →
- Not listed in CISA KEV
- A 0-100 score for how much a CVE matters across the industry: exploitation, exposure, how widely the software is used, severity and whether a fix exists.What do these mean? →
- 9/100 · provisional
- Fix
- Fixed in 0.41.0
- Whether working attack code is public (Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei or GitHub). Public code makes attacks easier.What do these mean? →
- None on Exploit-DB, Metasploit or GitHub
Summary
Node Version Manager (nvm), a shell tool for managing Node.js versions, keeps archives in its cache even after they fail checksum verification, so a later offline install can run a rejected archive. An attacker who can tamper with the downloaded tarball but cannot forge the matching checksum file can run code remotely, without logging in, if a user runs `nvm install --offline` for that version after a checksum-mismatch error and before retrying online.
Read the original description
Node Version Manager (nvm) is a POSIX-compliant shell function for managing multiple node.js versions. In versions 0.40.5 through 0.40.8, `nvm_download_artifact` downloads a release archive directly to its final path in `$NVM_DIR/.cache` and verifies its checksum afterwards; on a checksum mismatch it reports an error but leaves the rejected archive in place. A later `nvm install --offline` of the same version installs that cached file without a checksum, so an archive that was just rejected gets installed and its `node` and `npm` run. This gives code execution to a party who can alter the downloaded tarball (for example a poisoned CDN or cache object) but cannot also forge the `SHASUMS256.txt` beside it, if the victim runs `nvm install --offline` for that version after the visible "Checksums do not match" failure and before any online retry. Version 0.41.0 only puts an archive in the cache once its checksum has passed.
What to do
Upgrade to a fixed version: 0.41.0.
Timeline
- CVE published
- First seen by cve.now
Affected versions
- nvm-sh nvm
From 0.40.5 · fixed in 0.41.0
Evidence 2
- Advisory
- Patch
Corrections
None so far.
Something wrong on this page? Report an error. Every fix is listed here.
Questions about CVE-2026-121750
Is CVE-2026-121750 being exploited?
It is not in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, and CISA's SSVC assessment does not mark exploitation as active. That does not mean it has not been attacked: vendors and researchers can report attacks before CISA lists them. No public exploit code is tracked.Source: cve.now feed data
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-121750?
nvm: from 0.40.5 before 0.41.0.Source: cve.now feed data
How do I fix CVE-2026-121750?
Upgrade to a fixed version: 0.41.0.Source: cve.now feed data