undici vulnerable to TLS certificate validation bypass via dropped connect options in BalancedPool
Published 29 Sept 2026 · Updated 29 Sept 2026
Affected packages
- Affected
- >=7.24.1 <7.29.1
- Fixed in
- 7.29.1
npm install undici@7.29.1- Affected
- >=8.0.0 <8.10.2
- Fixed in
- 8.10.2
npm install undici@8.10.2Details
Impact
undici's BalancedPool passes its constructor options through a JSON-based deep clone (JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(...))) before forwarding them to each per-upstream Pool. JSON cannot represent functions, so a caller-supplied connect or tls option containing a checkServerIdentity callback (or a custom connector function) is silently dropped before it reaches the TLS layer. As a result, a TLS peer whose certificate a custom checkServerIdentity was written to reject, but which passes Node's default hostname and chain checks, is silently accepted when the request is made through BalancedPool. Client, Pool, Agent, and RoundRobinPool destructure connect/tls before the clone and are not affected. Only applications that use BalancedPool with a function-valued connect/tls option (such as a custom checkServerIdentity or connector) are affected.
Patches
Upgrade to 7.29.1 or 8.10.2. BalancedPool now preserves the connect and tls options outside the JSON clone, so custom TLS verification callbacks are forwarded to each upstream unchanged.
Workarounds
Use Client, Pool, or Agent instead of BalancedPool for connections that rely on a custom checkServerIdentity or connector, until upgraded.
Is GHSA-w293-vg96-wgc3 in any of your client repos?
Checking one package by hand is fine. Checking it across forty client projects is not. NPMscan reads the lockfiles in every GitHub repo you pick, finds each project with an affected undici, and gives you the command that fixes it.
References
- Linkgithub.com/nodejs/undici/security/advisories/GHSA-w293-vg96-wgc3
- Advisorynvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-84961
- Linkgithub.com/nodejs/undici/commit/8f5868fbdbc8f1146dfc1bcd1f2d117790141390
- Linkgithub.com/nodejs/undici/commit/f690157d728508652fef14673630c71515123e96
- Linkcna.openjsf.org/security-advisories.html
- Packagegithub.com/nodejs/undici
- Linkgithub.com/nodejs/undici/releases/tag/v7.29.1
- Linkgithub.com/nodejs/undici/releases/tag/v8.10.2
Advisory data from OSV.dev (opens OSV.dev in a new tab), refreshed daily.