CVE-2026-104849: Tinypool: Prototype Pollution Gadget to RCE in run() options

Should you act?

Critical and remotely reachable

No known exploitation yet, but it is network-reachable without credentials. This signal is computed from CISA KEV, EPSS and CVSS data; it is not an editorial verdict.

• Not in CISA KEV, but CISA’s SSVC assessment records a public proof-of-concept, so attack code exists.
• EPSS 0.4%, percentile 32: FIRST’s model estimates a 0.4% chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 32% of all scored CVEs (low). EPSS is a probability, not a verdict.
• Remotely reachable with no login and no user interaction. If the vulnerable service is exposed to the internet, prioritize it.
• Only applies if your dependency tree includes tinypool (npm) < 2.1.2, fixed in 2.1.2. Check your lockfile, including transitive dependencies.

What it is

Tinypool is a minimal Node.js worker thread pool implementation. Prior to 2.1.2, Tinypool reads filename from a caller-supplied options object in pool.run(task, options) without requiring an own property, so a polluted Object.prototype.filename can replace the intended worker module. Applications are affected only when they pass their own second-argument options object to pool.run(); calls without that argument use the trusted default options object. An attacker who can first pollute the prototype can cause the worker pool to load attacker-selected JavaScript and can read or modify task data with the host process's privileges. This issue is fixed in version 2.1.2.

From the GitHub advisory

tinypool is a fork of piscina and inherited the same prototype-pollution surface. When pool.run(task, options) is called, the filename option is read from the provided options object. If that object does not have an own filename property, the lookup falls through to Object.prototype.

An attacker who can pollute Object.prototype.filename (for example, via a vulnerable lodash.merge, qs.parse, or similar elsewhere in the application) can make tinypool load and execute an attacker-controlled worker module.

This is the tinypool counterpart to the piscina root discovery GHSA-x9g3-xrwr-cwfg.

pool.run(task) with no second argument is not affected, because kDefaultOptions.filename is null and the options object is not user-controlled. The exploit only triggers when the caller passes their own options object to pool.run().

Impact

Weakness type: CWE-94, CWE-1321.

Product: tinypool (npm) · Assigned by: GitHub_M · Published: 2026-10-02

Affected and fixed versions

Severity scores

• Attack vector: network (remotely reachable)
• Attack complexity: low
• Attack requirements: present (depends on deployment conditions)
• Privileges required: none (no login)
• User interaction: none

CVSS measures how bad a flaw is if exploited, not how likely exploitation is. Read it next to the exploitation data below.

Exploitation and urgency

• CISA KEV: not listed (no confirmed in-the-wild exploitation known to CISA).
• CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation poc, automatable yes, technical impact total.
• FIRST EPSS (model of 2026-10-21): 0.39% probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 32.

Timeline

• 2026-10-02 — CVE record published by GitHub_M
• 2026-10-05 — GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-85c8-ppgw-ccpr published (critical)
• 2026-10-06 — CVE record last updated

Sources and references

Original sources first. Version and fix details should always be confirmed against the vendor or project advisory.

Vulnerability records

1. GitHub Advisory GHSA-85c8-ppgw-ccpr github.com
2. CVE.org record CVE-2026-104849 cve.org
3. NVD entry CVE-2026-104849 nvd.nist.gov

Other references from the CVE record and advisory

1. github.com github.com
2. github.com github.com
3. github.com github.com
4. github.com github.com

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