CVE-2026-59874: node-tar: Negative tar entry size causes infinite loop in archive replace

July 20, 2026

A checksum-valid tar archive with a negative base-256 encoded entry size can make tar.replace() loop forever while scanning the existing archive. Applications that update attacker-controlled tar archives can have a worker process pinned indefinitely, causing denial of service.

References

github.com/advisories/GHSA-8x88-c5mf-7j5w
github.com/isaacs/node-tar/commit/9e78bf058b2c22dd4d52e00d8922d5c06fc2f7b5
github.com/isaacs/node-tar/releases/tag/v7.5.18
github.com/isaacs/node-tar/security/advisories/GHSA-8x88-c5mf-7j5w
nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-59874

Code Behaviors & Features

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