What’s Vulnerable › Vulnerabilities

CVE-2022-36079: Parse Server vulnerable to brute force guessing of user sensitive data via search patterns

• Severity: high (CVSS 7.5 v3.1)
• Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
• EPSS: 1.3% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
• Public exploit or detection template: none known
• Published: 2022-09-07 · updated 2026-06-17
• Weakness: CWE-200

Description

Parse Server is an open source backend that can be deployed to any infrastructure that can run Node.js. Internal fields (keys used internally by Parse Server, prefixed by `_`) and protected fields (user defined) can be used as query constraints. Internal and protected fields are removed by Parse Server and are only returned to the client using a valid master key. However, using query constraints, these fields can be guessed by enumerating until Parse Server, prior to versions 4.10.14 or 5.2.5, returns a response object. The patch available in versions 4.10.14 and 5.2.5 requires the maser key to use internal and protected fields as query constraints. As a workaround, implement a Parse Cloud Trigger `beforeFind` and manually remove the query constraints.

Affected products

• parse-community parse-server: before 4.10.14; from 5.0.0 before 5.2.5 — fixed in 4.10.14, 5.2.5

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: parse-community parse-server 4.10.14, 5.2.5. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

• https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/commit/634c44acd18f6ee6ec60fac89a2b602d92799bec
• https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/commit/e39d51bd329cd978589983bd659db46e1d45aad4
• https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/issues/8143
• https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/issues/8144
• https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/releases/tag/4.10.14
• https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/releases/tag/5.2.5
• https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/security/advisories/GHSA-2m6g-crv8-p3c6
• https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/commit/634c44acd18f6ee6ec60fac89a2b602d92799bec
• https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/commit/e39d51bd329cd978589983bd659db46e1d45aad4
• https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/issues/8143
• https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/issues/8144
• https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server/releases/tag/4.10.14

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