Vulnerability in handlebars-lang handlebars.js

[ Why it matters ]Priority signals

• Public proof-of-concept exploit exists (CISA SSVC)

[ Description ]Official description

Handlebars provides the power necessary to let users build semantic templates. In versions 4.0.0 through 4.7.8, when a Handlebars template contains decorator syntax referencing an unregistered decorator (e.g. `{{*n}}`), the compiled template calls `lookupProperty(decorators, "n")`, which returns `undefined`. The runtime then immediately invokes the result as a function, causing an unhandled `TypeError: ... is not a function` that crashes the Node.js process. Any application that compiles user-supplied templates without wrapping the call in a `try/catch` is vulnerable to a single-request Denial of Service. Version 4.7.9 fixes the issue. Some workarounds are available. Wrap compilation and rendering in `try/catch`. Validate template input before passing it to `compile()`; reject templates containing decorator syntax (`{{*...}}`) if decorators are not used in your application. Use the pre-compilation workflow; compile templates at build time and serve only pre-compiled templates; do not call `compile()` at request time.

[ Fixes ]Fixes and patches

No fix or interim patch is linked from our sources yet. Check the vendor references below and limit exposure of affected systems until a fix is available.

[ Advisories ]Government CERT advisories

• BSI CERT-Bund29 Sep 2026WID-SEC-2026-3655

  IBM InfoSphere Data Replication: Multiple vulnerabilities Translated from German

  CVE-2026-33937CVE-2026-33941CVE-2026-33939+3 more CVEs

[ References ]References

• github.com/handlebars-lang/handlebars.js/security/advisories/GHSA-9cx6-37pm-9jffx_refsource_CONFIRM
• github.com/handlebars-lang/handlebars.js/commit/68d8df5a88e0a26fe9e6084c5c6aaebe67b07da2x_refsource_MISC
• github.com/handlebars-lang/handlebars.js/releases/tag/v4.7.9x_refsource_MISC