Description
### Summary
When `qs.parse` is called with `comma: true` and `throwOnLimitExceeded: true`, a comma-separated value under a bracket-push key (`a[]=1,2,3,4`) is split into an array without being compared against `arrayLimit`, while the same value under a flat key (`a=1,2,3,4`), an indexed key (`a[0]=`), a nested key (`a[b]=`), or a dotted key (`a.b=` with `allowDots`) throws the documented `RangeError`. A single parameter such as `a[]=1,2,2,...` therefore produces an inner array of arbitrary length even though the caller opted into the hard limit. This is the `[]=` key form that the fix for CVE-2026-2391 (qs 6.14.2) did not cover.
### Details
In `lib/parse.js`, a comma-separated value under a `[]=` key is split and then wrapped as a single nested element (`val = [val]`, so that each `a[]=x,y` group counts as one element of the outer array). The `arrayLimit` check that 6.14.2 added for comma values runs after that wrap, so for `[]=` parts it only ever saw the wrapper of length 1. 6.15.3 added a pre-split comma count so that an oversized value throws before it is allocated, but gated it on an `isFlatArrayValue` flag that `parseValues` set to `false` for any part containing `[]=`, and did not pass it for object-valued input, so the gap remained.
#### PoC
```js
var qs = require('qs');
var options = { comma: true, arrayLimit: 3, throwOnLimitExceeded: true };
qs.parse('a=1,2,3,4', options); // RangeError: Array limit exceeded. Only 3 elements allowed in an array.
qs.parse('a[]=1,2,3,4', options); // { a: [ [ '1', '2', '3', '4' ] ] } (no throw)
qs.parse('a[]=' + '1,'.repeat(1000000) + '1', { comma: true, arrayLimit: 20, throwOnLimitExceeded: true });
// no throw; a 1,000,001-element inner array is allocated
```
#### Fix
`lib/parse.js`, applied in 8859c37 on `main` and released as v6.16.0: the `isFlatArrayValue` gate is removed, so every comma-split value is counted against `arrayLimit` before splitting regardless of key form. An in-limit group under `a[]=` still counts as one element of the outer array, and the default (`throwOnLimitExceeded: false`) path is unchanged.
### Affected versions
`>=6.14.2 <6.16.0`, fixed in v6.16.0.
v6.14.2 introduced `arrayLimit` enforcement for comma values (the fix for CVE-2026-2391) but only for values not under a `[]=` key, and every release from v6.14.2 through v6.15.3 has the same gap. v6.14.0 and v6.14.1, where `throwOnLimitExceeded` exists but does not apply to any comma form, are covered by CVE-2026-2391 rather than this record. Earlier lines (6.7.x through 6.13.x) have `comma` but no `throwOnLimitExceeded`, so there is no hard cap on any comma path to bypass; releases before 6.7.0 have no `comma` option.
### Impact
An unauthenticated attacker who can reach an application that parses untrusted query strings or urlencoded bodies with both `comma: true` and `throwOnLimitExceeded: true` (both non-default) can bypass the configured limit with a single `a[]=` parameter and force the parser to allocate an array proportional to the request size. The cost is strictly linear in the attacker-supplied bytes (about 0.1 microseconds and 6 to 7 retained bytes per input byte; the same out-of-memory threshold as the documented default `throwOnLimitExceeded: false` path), so a transport-layer request or body size limit bounds it completely (and node's default maximum HTTP header size of 16 KB already bounds the request line, so multi-megabyte payloads need a body parser). The impact is that an opt-in hard limit fails open on one key spelling, not unbounded allocation from a small input.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|---|
| ljharb | qs | 6.14.2 – < 6.16.0 | 6.16.0 |
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 14 | node-qs | 6.16.0+ds+~6.15.1-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | node-qs | No fix yet | — |
| Debian 12 | node-qs | No fix yet | — |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 26.10 | node-qs | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 26.04 LTS | node-qs | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | node-qs | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 22.04 LTS | node-qs | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu 18.04 LTS | node-qs | No fix yet | — |
Show 3 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 16.04 LTS | node-qs | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu Pro 20.04 LTS | node-qs | No fix yet | — |
| Ubuntu Pro 14.04 LTS | node-qs | No fix yet | — |
Red Hat
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Hardened Images 1 | grafana12.4 | 12.4.9-0.4.hum1 | RHSA-2026:60866 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images 1 | grafana13.1 | 13.1.3-0.4.hum1 | RHSA-2026:62544 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images 1 | grafana13.2 | 13.2.1-0.1.hum1 | RHSA-2026:63164 |
Wolfi
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wolfi rolling | argo-workflows-ui-4.0 | 4.0.11-r0 | — |
| Wolfi rolling | code-server | 4.135.0-r2 | — |
| Wolfi rolling | json-server | 0.17.4-r13 | — |
| Wolfi rolling | kubeflow-centraldashboard | 2.0.0-r2 | — |
| Wolfi rolling | langfuse-3 +1 | 3.225.7-r1 | — |
| Wolfi rolling | langfuse-3-compat | 3.225.7-r6 | — |
| Wolfi rolling | opensearch-dashboards-3 | 3.8.0-r2 | — |
| Wolfi rolling | opensearch-dashboards-3-dashboards-maps +11 | 3.8.0-r1 | — |
| Wolfi rolling | prism | 5.16.0-r8 | — |
| Wolfi rolling | renovate | 44.69.8-r0 | — |
| Wolfi rolling | sqlpad | 7.5.7-r36 | — |
| Wolfi rolling | tileserver-gl | 5.6.0-r14 | — |
Affected packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected | Fixed | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| npm | qs | >= 6.14.2, < 6.16.0 | 6.16.0 | GHSA-x5fp-wj9c-mxmx |
Advisories 6
- RHSA-2026:63164 Red Hat Security Advisory: Red Hat Hardened Images RPMs bug fix and enhancement update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Nov 13, 2026
- WID-SEC-2026-3596 IBM App Connect Enterprise: Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Nov 10, 2026
- RHSA-2026:62544 Red Hat Security Advisory: Red Hat Hardened Images RPMs Security Update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Oct 20, 2026
- RHSA-2026:60866 Red Hat Security Advisory: Red Hat Hardened Images RPMs Security Update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Oct 20, 2026
- WID-SEC-2026-3623 IBM DataPower Gateway: Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Oct 18, 2026
- NCSC-2026-0431 Kwetsbaarheden verholpen in IBM DataPower Gateway en onderliggende componenten NCSC-NL (Netherlands) · Oct 16, 2026