YAML decodes malformed JSON Files with Newline Characters as Valid YAML

[viveksahu26]

Description

I encountered an issue where a file in JSON format, which contained a content issue (newline character splitting a string), could not be decoded by a JSON parser but was successfully decoded by the YAML parser. This behavior caused the file to be incorrectly identified as YAML, even though it was intended to be JSON.

Steps to Reproduce:

1. Create a file with the following content (malformed JSON with a newline character in a string):

   {
       "creators": ["Person: Yukihiro
       Kawada"],
       "spdxVersion": "SPDX-2.2"
   }

2. Attempt to decode this file:

   • Using a JSON parser: This will fail with a syntax error (due to the newline character breaking the JSON string).
   • Using the YAML parser: This will succeed, interpreting the content as valid YAML.

3. The YAML parser decodes the file into the following structure:

   creators:
     - "Person: Yukihiro Kawada"
   spdxVersion: "SPDX-2.2"

Expected Behavior:

The YAML parser should either:

1. Recognize that the file is malformed and fail to decode it.
2. Provide a mechanism to differentiate between valid YAML and JSON masquerading as YAML.

Actual Behavior:

The YAML parser successfully decodes the malformed JSON, causing the file to be misclassified as YAML. In actually, the feeded file is JSON format.

Extra resource:

file:
tt.json

[perlpunk]

go-yaml is correct here. YAML is a superset of JSON: https://yaml.org/spec/1.2.2/#12-yaml-history
Its so called "flow style" basically works like JSON, but allows more things.

[viveksahu26]

Thanks for your response!!
Hey @perlpunk So, it's a fine if a JSON format file is considered as a YAML format, right ?

[perlpunk]

So, it's a fine if a JSON format file is considered as a YAML format, right ?

yes

[viveksahu26]

closing it, as discussion completed.