CVE Vulnerability Lookup
Search for Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) with detailed information including severity scores, affected software, and references.
Usage
npx tsx scripts/lookup.ts [cve-id | --product <name>] [options]
Arguments
| Argument | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
cve-id | No* | Search by CVE ID (e.g., CVE-2024-1086) |
--product | No* | Search for CVEs affecting a product |
*Either cve-id or --product must be provided
Options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
--no-cache | Bypass cache and fetch fresh data |
--limit=<n> | Limit results for product search (default: 10) |
Output
CVE ID Search Output:
📋 CVE-2024-1086
Severity: HIGH (7.8)
Published: 2024-01-15 12:30
Modified: 2024-01-20 08:45
Summary:
A buffer overflow vulnerability in Linux kernel network stack...
CVSS v3.1: 7.8 (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H)
Affected Software:
1. Linux Kernel - Versions 5.15 to 6.6, 6.7-rc1 to 6.7
Versions: 5.15.0, 5.16.0, 6.0.0, 6.1.0, 6.2.0 ... and 15 more
Weaknesses: CWE-120 (Buffer Copy without Checking Size of Input)
References:
1. https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-1086
2. https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/alerts/2024/01/15/...
3. https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-...
Quick Start
npx tsx scripts/lookup.ts CVE-2024-1086 npx tsx scripts/lookup.ts --product OpenSSL npx tsx scripts/lookup.ts --product "Apache Struts" --limit 20
Run from the cve-search plugin directory: ~/.claude/plugins/cache/cve-search/
Data Sources
The skill uses OpenCVE API as the primary data source:
- •OpenCVE: Lightweight, JSON-based CVE database
- •Coverage: Official CVE list with detailed metadata
- •Update frequency: Synchronized with official CVE feeds
- •No authentication: Public API, free to use
How It Works
CVE ID Lookup
When searching by CVE ID (e.g., CVE-2024-1086):
- •Queries OpenCVE API with exact CVE identifier
- •Returns complete vulnerability details
- •Shows severity, CVSS score, affected products, and references
- •Results cached for 24 hours
Product Search
When searching by product name (e.g., --product OpenSSL):
- •Queries OpenCVE API with product search
- •Returns matching CVEs (limited to specified count)
- •Shows all vulnerabilities affecting that product
- •Useful for identifying software risks
Output Format
CVE ID Search Output
📋 CVE-2024-1086
Severity: HIGH (7.8)
Published: 2024-01-15 12:30
Modified: 2024-01-20 08:45
Summary:
A buffer overflow vulnerability in Linux kernel network stack...
CVSS v3.1: 7.8 (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H)
Affected Software:
1. Linux Kernel - Versions 5.15 to 6.6, 6.7-rc1 to 6.7
Versions: 5.15.0, 5.16.0, 6.0.0, 6.1.0, 6.2.0 ... and 15 more
Weaknesses: CWE-120 (Buffer Copy without Checking Size of Input)
References:
1. https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-1086
2. https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/alerts/2024/01/15/...
3. https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-...
Product Search Output
Searching for CVEs affecting "OpenSSL"... Found 12 CVE(s): 📋 CVE-2023-6129 Severity: HIGH (7.5) Published: 2023-11-28 12:00 Summary: PKCS #7 Signature Verification Bypass... [truncated] 📋 CVE-2023-5678 Severity: MEDIUM (5.3) ...
API Response Format
OpenCVE Response Structure
{
"results": [
{
"cveid": "CVE-2024-1086",
"summary": "Buffer overflow in kernel network stack",
"severity": "HIGH",
"cvss": 7.8,
"cvss_v3": {
"score": 7.8,
"vector": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
},
"created_at": "2024-01-15T12:30:00Z",
"updated_at": "2024-01-20T08:45:00Z",
"vendors": [
{
"name": "linux",
"product": "Linux Kernel",
"versions": ["5.15.0", "5.16.0", "6.0.0", ...]
}
],
"references": ["https://nvd.nist.gov/...", "..."],
"cwe": ["CWE-120"]
}
]
}
Use Cases
Security Audit
Check if deployed software has known vulnerabilities:
npx tsx scripts/lookup.ts --product "Apache Tomcat" --limit 50
Incident Response
Quickly look up a CVE mentioned in an alert:
npx tsx scripts/lookup.ts CVE-2024-1234
Dependency Scanning
Verify your project dependencies for known issues:
npx tsx scripts/lookup.ts --product "jQuery" --limit 20
Vulnerability Assessment
Research a specific vulnerability before patching:
npx tsx scripts/lookup.ts CVE-2024-1086 --no-cache
Caching
Results are cached for 24 hours by default. CVE information doesn't change frequently, so caching significantly improves performance.
Use --no-cache when:
- •You need the latest CVE information
- •Recently patched vulnerabilities may not be in cache
- •Doing a fresh security assessment
Limitations
- •Search coverage: Depends on OpenCVE's database (generally comprehensive for official CVE list)
- •Real-time updates: Cached for 24 hours (use
--no-cachefor fresh data) - •Product name matching: Uses substring search (may return unrelated CVEs)
- •Rate limiting: OpenCVE API has rate limits (automatic backoff implemented)
- •Detailed info: Some older CVEs may have incomplete metadata
Exit Codes
| Code | Meaning |
|---|---|
0 | Success (CVE found or search completed) |
1 | CVE not found or error occurred |
Examples
Find a specific vulnerability
npx tsx scripts/lookup.ts CVE-2024-1086 # Returns full details of the Linux kernel buffer overflow
Search for vulnerabilities in OpenSSL
npx tsx scripts/lookup.ts --product OpenSSL # Returns up to 10 OpenSSL CVEs
Get all recent Django vulnerabilities
npx tsx scripts/lookup.ts --product "Django" --limit 30 # Returns up to 30 Django-related CVEs
Fresh lookup bypassing cache
npx tsx scripts/lookup.ts CVE-2024-1234 --no-cache # Fetches latest data from OpenCVE API
Related Skills
- •Use with version checking tools to identify if your installed version is vulnerable
- •Combine with security scanning tools for comprehensive vulnerability assessment
- •Cross-reference with GitHub Advisories for ecosystem-specific information
Troubleshooting
"CVE not found"
- •CVE may not yet be in the public database
- •Try with
--no-cacheto check latest database - •Verify CVE ID format:
CVE-YYYY-NNNNN
No results for product search
- •Product name may not match database naming
- •Try alternate names (e.g., "Apache HTTP Server" vs "Apache")
- •Check OpenCVE documentation for correct product names
Rate limit error
- •Wait a moment and retry
- •Use cached results from previous queries
- •Limit number of simultaneous requests