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Full vulnerability report · 2022
CVE-2022-21222High confidence

Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS)

n/a · css-what

5.3MediumCVSS 3.1
Recommended action
Within 7 days

Medium technical severity with public exploit material referenced by a structured source; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Fix not verified
Distribution package intelligence

Ubuntu vendor package status

Canonical’s release and source-package findings are shown separately from local repository availability.

1 package state
Repository candidate not checked

A published vendor fix does not prove that a matching update is enabled and installable on a particular asset. Confirm the local package candidate before scheduling remediation.

Ubuntu releaseSource packageVendor stateFixed versionEvidence
Ubuntu 24.04 LTSnoble · standard archivenode-css-whatUnder evaluationCanonical reports that the package might be affected and still needs evaluation or fixing.Not published in this feedCanonical record ↗Source updated 11 Sept 2026
Direct vendor intelligence

Authoritative vendor CSAF and VEX advisories

Structured product status and remediation from the issuing vendor. Product-state explanations are always visible; large lists can be searched or downloaded.

1 current
CVE-2022-21222 · CSAF 2.0 · revision 3 · status not statedRed Hat Product Securitycss-what: ReDoS due to insecure regular expression
14 known affected

The vendor explicitly identifies these products as affected by this CVE.

  • servicemesh-grafana as a component of OpenShift Service Mesh 2.0
  • servicemesh-grafana-prometheus as a component of OpenShift Service Mesh 2.0
  • servicemesh-grafana.src as a component of OpenShift Service Mesh 2.0
  • servicemesh-grafana as a component of OpenShift Service Mesh 2.1
  • servicemesh-grafana.src as a component of OpenShift Service Mesh 2.1
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat build of Apicurio Registry 2
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat Decision Manager 7
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat Fuse 7
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat Integration Service Registry
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat JBoss Data Grid 7
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 6
  • openshift3/ose-console as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 3.11
Summary
A vulnerability was found in the css-what package. The flaw allows Regular expression denial of service (ReDoS) attacks, affecting system availability.
Remediation
Affected
Optional official sources

National CERT insights
?CERT means Computer Emergency Response Team; CSIRT is the closely related term Computer Security Incident Response Team.

Select the national-authority views to include. The exact source language is shown on each matched advisory. Your choice is remembered on this device and encoded in the shareable URL.

Official European source

ENISA European Vulnerability Database

Official EUVD identifiers, advisory evidence and known-exploited context. Missing fields are not treated as evidence of low risk.

1 current
ENISA EUVD identifier

EUVD-2022-7138

No EUVD known-exploited evidence

ENISA has published the identifier mapping but no EUVD description has been stored yet.

EUVD state
Present in the current official mapping
Known exploitation
Not present in the current ENISA EUVD known-exploited dataset. This is not proof of no exploitation.
ENISA score
Not supplied in the stored EUVD record
Advisory evidence
No linked advisory details stored yet
Recommended actionWithin 7 days

Medium technical severity with public exploit material referenced by a structured source; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Fix not verified
01

What, why and how

The package css-what before 2.1.3 are vulnerable to Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS) due to the usage of insecure regular expression in the re_attr variable of index.js. The exploitation of this vulnerability could be triggered via the parse function.

What

The package css-what before 2.1.3 are vulnerable to Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS) due to the usage of insecure regular expression in the re_attr variable of index.js. The exploitation of this vulnerability could be triggered via the parse function.

Why

The product uses a regular expression with a worst-case computational complexity that is inefficient and possibly exponential.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may disrupt the affected service.

What

The package css-what before 2.1.3 are vulnerable to Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS) due to the usage of insecure regular expression in the re_attr variable of index.js. The exploitation of this vulnerability could be triggered via the parse function.

Why

The product uses a regular expression with a worst-case computational complexity that is inefficient and possibly exponential.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may disrupt the affected service.

02

Exploit reality and attack path

CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.

Observed exploitation
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
No confirmed evidence

No CISA KEV match was present at the last successful refresh. This means no confirmation from that source, not proof of no exploitation.

Public PoC / exploit material
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
Reference recorded

A structured CVE source labels at least one public reference as exploit material. BlackTree has not independently validated that it is safe, reliable or weaponised.

Likely attack path
a network path → Inefficient Regular Expression Complexity → disrupt the affected service
Attack surface
Network
Privileges required
None: unauthenticated exploitation is possible
User interaction
None
Attack complexity
Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
Security boundary
Unchanged: impact remains within the vulnerable component's security authority
Weakness
?CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness.
CWE-1333

CWE-1333: Inefficient Regular Expression Complexity. The product uses a regular expression with a worst-case computational complexity that is inefficient and possibly exponential.

CVSS vector
?CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L/E:P

Common Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.

AVNetworkAttack vector: The vulnerable component can be reached over a network.ACLowAttack complexity: No specialised conditions are required beyond attacker-controlled input.PRNonePrivileges required: The attacker does not need an account or existing privileges.UINoneUser interaction: No action by another user is required.SUnchangedScope: The security impact remains within the vulnerable component's authority.CNoneConfidentiality impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.INoneIntegrity impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.ALowAvailability impact: A successful attack can cause a limited loss.
Post-exploitation / living off the land
No specific living-off-the-land technique is confirmed in the structured sources. Monitor normal administration tools for activity inconsistent with the affected service's baseline.
NetworkUnauthenticatedDenial of serviceCWE-1333Public exploit reference
A

Official authority intelligence

Only matched European and national findings are included. Language selectors and unavailable sources are omitted.

Cyber Security Agency of Singapore · English · CSA-SB-20221005Security Bulletin 05 Oct 2022

The Cyber Security Agency of Singapore included this CVE in its official Security Bulletin 05 Oct 2022, published on 5 October 2022. Open the linked bulletin for the product, severity and reference information published in that issue.

Official advisory ↗
JVN iPedia · Japanese · JVNDB-2022-018160css-what project の Node.js 用 css-what における非効率的な正規表現の複雑さに関する脆弱性

css-what project の Node.js 用 css-what には、非効率的な正規表現の複雑さに関する脆弱性が存在します。

Official advisory ↗
03

Patch and workaround

Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.

Status
?Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Fix not verified
Affected
  • servicemesh-grafana as a component of OpenShift Service Mesh 2.0
  • servicemesh-grafana-prometheus as a component of OpenShift Service Mesh 2.0
  • servicemesh-grafana.src as a component of OpenShift Service Mesh 2.0
  • servicemesh-grafana as a component of OpenShift Service Mesh 2.1
  • servicemesh-grafana.src as a component of OpenShift Service Mesh 2.1
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat build of Apicurio Registry 2
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat Decision Manager 7
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat Fuse 7
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat Integration Service Registry
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat JBoss Data Grid 7
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 6
  • openshift3/ose-console as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 3.11
  • openshift4/ose-console as a component of Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4
  • css-what as a component of Red Hat Process Automation 7
Fixed
No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
Action
No verified patch reference is present in the current structured sources. Check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Workaround
No verified workaround is recorded. If business-safe, reduce exposure to the affected interface and allow only trusted sources until authoritative guidance is available.
04

Evidence and provenance

Published 30 Sept 2022 · Last source change 20 May 2025, 16:04 UTC · CWE-1333 · Inefficient Regular Expression Complexity

CVE recordCVE.org · 5.1
CVSS sourceCNA
EPSS source
?The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.
FIRST · tracked since 2026-08-14
European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2022-7138
Product sourceVendor CSAF · Red Hat Product Security
Remediation sourceVendor CSAF · Red Hat Product Security
CWE sourceCISA ADP
NVD statusNVD modified after enrichment

Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.

Material change intelligence

What changed after publication

View recent updates ↗

No material field changes have been recorded since change tracking began. Routine source refreshes and cosmetic edits are intentionally excluded.

Material fields only · duplicate refreshes suppressed · history retained for the configured operational retention period
Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report
CVE
Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
CVSS
Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
EPSS
Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
CWE
Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
CNA
CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
CISA ADP
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
NVD
National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
CERT / CSIRT
A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
PoC
Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
CSAF
Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
LoTL
Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.
Free version - for non-commercial use only.CVE-2022-21222 · cve.blacktree.nl