---
title: "WEB-NODE-002 Node.js Debugger (Inspector) Enabled in a Service"
canonical: https://openvapt.com/checks/WEB-NODE-002.html
html: https://openvapt.com/checks/WEB-NODE-002.html
site: OpenVAPT, https://openvapt.com/
license: OpenVAPT Source-Available Licence 1.3, https://openvapt.com/legal/licence-text.html
modified: 2026-10-14
version: 0.1.0-alpha.6
---

# WEB-NODE-002 Node.js Debugger (Inspector) Enabled in a Service

Checks whether a Node.js service is started with --inspect, which opens the V8 debugger.

- Domain: Web Apps
- Severity: Critical
- Control category: Secure Configuration
- Fix effort: low
- CVSS v3.1 vector: `CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`
- CIS Controls v8: 16.7
- NIST CSF 2.0: PR.PS-01
- CWE: CWE-489, CWE-306
- OWASP Top 10 2021: A05:2021
- OWASP ASVS 4.0.3: 14.3.2
- NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5: CM-7, CM-6

## Why It Matters

The inspector has no authentication: anyone who can connect to it can run any JavaScript inside the application, as the service's user. Bound to 0.0.0.0 that is remote code execution; even on 127.0.0.1 any local user or server-side request forgery bug can reach it.

## How It Detects

Reads ExecStart= and Environment= (including NODE_OPTIONS) of long-running services that run node, npm, yarn, pnpm or pm2, and flags --inspect, --inspect-brk and --inspect-wait. A network-reachable listener on port 9229 is also reported by NET-APP-001.

## How to Fix

Remove --inspect from the service and from NODE_OPTIONS, run systemctl daemon-reload and restart. Debug on a development machine, or temporarily over an SSH tunnel to 127.0.0.1:9229.

## How to Verify

```
systemctl show -p ExecStart,Environment <unit> | grep -c inspect  prints 0, and nothing listens on 9229.
```

## Learn the Theory

- [P13 Application Servers: Tomcat, Node.js and Python](https://openvapt.com/academy/p13.md)

## References

- [Node.js documentation, Debugging guide (security implications)](https://nodejs.org/learn/getting-started/debugging)
- [OWASP Node.js Security Cheat Sheet](https://cheatsheetseries.owasp.org/cheatsheets/Nodejs_Security_Cheat_Sheet.html)

## Source Code

https://github.com/OpenVAPT/openvapt/blob/574f7f3333c44b75a3c649e2d93a76d507f75adf/internal/checks/web/runtimes.go

Run it: `openvapt scan --only WEB-NODE-002`. Read it offline: `openvapt explain WEB-NODE-002`.

---

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