CVE-2026-83616
Received Received - Intake

XML Injection in xmldom via ProcessingInstruction

Publication date: 2026-09-01

Last updated on: 2026-09-01

Assigner: GitHub, Inc.

Description
xmldom is a pure JavaScript W3C standard-based (XML DOM Level 2 Core) DOMParser and XMLSerializer module. Prior to @xmldom/xmldom versions 0.8.15 and 0.9.12, and in xmldom version 0.6.0 and earlier, Document.createProcessingInstruction(target, data) in lib/dom.js accepts an unvalidated target, while the requireWellFormed: true serializer checks only for a colon and the reserved case-insensitive xml name on 0.9.x and performs no target check on 0.8.x. Because serialization emits <?target data?>, a target containing >, ?, whitespace, or another invalid XML-name character can break the processing-instruction boundary and inject XML structure. This issue is fixed in @xmldom/xmldom versions 0.8.15 and 0.9.12; no fixed version is available for xmldom.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-09-01
Last Modified
2026-09-01
Generated
2026-09-01
AI Q&A
2026-09-01
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-83616
EUVD
EUVD-2026-69239

Affected Vendors & Products

Currently, no data is known.

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-91 The product does not properly neutralize special elements that are used in XML, allowing attackers to modify the syntax, content, or commands of the XML before it is processed by an end system.

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Executive Summary

This vulnerability affects the xmldom library, which is used for parsing and serializing XML in JavaScript. The issue is in the Document.createProcessingInstruction function, which accepts an unvalidated target parameter. When serializing XML with the requireWellFormed option enabled, the function fails to properly validate the target, allowing characters like >, ?, or whitespace to break the XML structure. This can lead to XML injection attacks where malicious XML content is inserted into the document.

Detection Guidance

To detect this vulnerability, check if your system uses vulnerable versions of xmldom (0.7.0 to 0.8.14 or 0.9.0 to 0.9.11). Run commands like 'npm list xmldom' or 'npm list @xmldom/xmldom' to verify installed versions. If vulnerable, update to versions 0.8.15 or 0.9.12 or later.

Impact Analysis

If you use a vulnerable version of xmldom, an attacker could craft malicious XML input that, when parsed and serialized, injects unintended XML structures. This could lead to data corruption, denial of service, or other unexpected behavior in applications relying on xmldom for XML processing. The impact depends on how the application uses the library.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could potentially impact compliance with GDPR and HIPAA by enabling XML injection attacks. If exploited, it may allow unauthorized data access or modification through XML structure injection, which could violate data integrity and confidentiality requirements under these regulations.

Mitigation Strategies

Update to @xmldom/xmldom versions 0.8.15 or 0.9.12 or later. If using xmldom version 0.6.0 or earlier, upgrade to a fixed version if available.

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