Dependency Vulnerabilities

Category: Supply Chain & Dependencies
Severity: High
MITRE ATT&CK Mapping: T1195.001 (Compromise Software Dependencies and Development Tools)

Description

Security flaws in third-party libraries and dependencies used by MCP servers, enabling attackers to exploit vulnerable components to compromise MCP systems.

Technical Details

Attack Vector

  • Vulnerable third-party libraries
  • Outdated dependencies
  • Insecure dependency configurations
  • Transitive dependency vulnerabilities

Common Techniques

  • Known vulnerability exploitation
  • Dependency confusion attacks
  • Version downgrade attacks
  • Transitive dependency exploitation

Impact

  • Code Execution: Arbitrary code execution through vulnerable dependencies
  • Data Exposure: Sensitive data access through dependency flaws
  • System Compromise: System access through dependency exploitation
  • Privilege Escalation: Elevated access through dependency vulnerabilities

Detection Methods

Dependency Scanning

  • Scan dependencies for vulnerabilities
  • Monitor dependency versions
  • Track security advisories
  • Analyze dependency usage

Vulnerability Monitoring

  • Monitor vulnerability databases
  • Track dependency security updates
  • Detect vulnerable components
  • Analyze security patches

Mitigation Strategies

Dependency Management

  • Implement dependency scanning
  • Use dependency pinning
  • Deploy vulnerability monitoring
  • Monitor dependency updates

Security Updates

  • Implement regular updates
  • Use automated patching
  • Deploy security monitoring
  • Monitor vulnerability status

Real-World Examples

Example 1: Vulnerable Library Usage

# Using vulnerable version of library
import requests_old_version  # Contains known RCE vulnerability

def fetch_data(url):
    # Vulnerable to remote code execution
    response = requests_old_version.get(url)
    return response.content

Example 2: Transitive Dependency Vulnerability

{
  "dependencies": {
    "mcp-tool": "1.0.0"
  }
}

// mcp-tool depends on vulnerable-lib 2.1.0
// vulnerable-lib has known security issues
// Vulnerability inherited through transitive dependency

Example 3: Dependency Confusion

# Legitimate internal dependency
import internal_mcp_utils

# Attacker creates public package with same name
# Package manager resolves to malicious public version
# import internal_mcp_utils  # Actually imports malicious version

References & Sources

  • Red Hat - “Model Context Protocol (MCP): Understanding security risks and controls”
  • Strobes Security - “MCP and Its Critical Vulnerabilities”
  • Structured MCP Threats - Comprehensive threat landscape analysis

Dependency vulnerabilities represent a significant attack surface that can compromise MCP systems through third-party component flaws.