Privilege escalation in Deno

CVE-2025-61785

Deno is a JavaScript, TypeScript, and WebAssembly runtime. In versions prior to 2.5.3 and 2.2.15, `Deno.FsFile.prototype.utime` and `Deno.FsFile.prototype.utimeSync` are not limited by the permission model check `--deny-write=./`. It's possible to change to change the access (`atime`) and modification (`mtime`) times on the file stream resource even when the file is opened with `read` only permission (and `write`: `false`) and file write operations are not allowed (the script is executed with `--deny-write=./`). Similar APIs like `Deno.utime` and `Deno.utimeSync` require `allow-write` permission, however, when a file is opened, even with read only flags and deny-write permission, it's still possible to change the access (`atime`) and modification (`mtime`) times, and thus bypass the permission model. Versions 2.5.3 and 2.2.15 fix the issue.

Published · last modified .

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 3.3 (Low). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.002 (8.8th percentile), scored .

Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 9th percentile — 8.8% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS trend (30 days)EPSS over the last 30 days for CVE-2025-61785: held from 0.002 to 0.002.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.002 · newest: 0.002 · change: +0.000

Affected products

Weakness classification (CWE)

Public proof-of-concept exploits

References

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2025-61785?
CVE-2025-61785 is a low-severity vulnerability in Deno, classified under Incorrect Privilege Assignment. CVSS score: 3.3/10. Published 2025-10-08.
How severe is CVE-2025-61785?
Low severity. CVSS v3 base score is 3.3 out of 10.
Is CVE-2025-61785 known to be exploited?
2 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.