CVE-2017-1000212: Alchemist.vim Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-6x65-vqp7-5r63
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CVSS 9.8
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2017-1000212 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) remote code execution vulnerability (General Security Weakness) affecting Alchemist.vim libraries in the Hex ecosystem. The issue involves alchemist.vim vulnerable to remote code execution. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.3.2.

CVE-2017-1000212 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2017-1000212
GHSA Identifier GHSA-6x65-vqp7-5r63
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification General Security Weakness
Affected Product Alchemist.vim
Package Ecosystem Hex
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 9.8

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2017-1000212

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Alchemist.vim dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

alchemist.vim fixed: 1.3.2 
Upgrade alchemist.vim to 1.3.2
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

inspect dependencies for alchemist.vim

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your application is affected by CVE-2017-1000212, inspect your project dependencies for Alchemist.vim:

inspect dependencies for alchemist.vim

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Alchemist.vim in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.3.2), your application is affected.

Note: Verify declared build manifests and deployed runtime container environments.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under General Security Weakness. In Alchemist.vim, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

Elixir's vim plugin, alchemist.vim is vulnerable to remote code execution in the bundled alchemist-server. A malicious website can execute requests against an ephemeral port on localhost that are then evaluated as elixir code.

CVE-2017-1000212 Affected Alchemist.vim Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
1.3.2
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
alchemist.vim
 Hex
< 1.3.2
1.3.2

References

NVD — CVE-2017-1000212 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-1000212
Alchemist.vim Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/tonini/alchemist-server/issues/14
Alchemist.vim Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/tonini/alchemist-server/pull/16
Alchemist.vim Security Information SECURITY
https://elixirforum.com/t/static-and-session-security-fixes-for-plug/3913
Alchemist.vim Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/tonini/alchemist-server

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2017-1000212?
CVE-2017-1000212 is a security vulnerability in Alchemist.vim involving alchemist.vim vulnerable to remote code execution under General Security Weakness.
Which Alchemist.vim versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 1.3.2 across affected packages: alchemist.vim.
What version fixes CVE-2017-1000212?
Upgrading to 1.3.2 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is alchemist.vim affected?
Yes, alchemist.vim is affected in releases prior to 1.3.2. Upgrade your dependency to 1.3.2 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2017-1000212?
CVE-2017-1000212 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (CRITICAL) with vector string CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2017-1000212?
CVE-2017-1000212 is classified under General Security Weakness.
How can I check Hex dependencies for CVE-2017-1000212?
Run the dependency tree command: 'inspect dependencies for alchemist.vim'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-6x65-vqp7-5r63",
  "modified" : "2022-07-01T13:46:54Z",
  "published" : "2022-05-13T01:41:00Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2017-1000212" ],
  "summary" : "alchemist.vim vulnerable to remote code execution",
  "details" : "Elixir's vim plugin, alchemist.vim is vulnerable to remote code execution in the bundled alchemist-server. A malicious website can execute requests against an ephemeral port on localhost that are then evaluated as elixir code.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Hex",
      "name" : "alchemist.vim"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.3.2"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 1.3.1"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-1000212"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/tonini/alchemist-server/issues/14"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/tonini/alchemist-server/pull/16"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://elixirforum.com/t/static-and-session-security-fixes-for-plug/3913"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/tonini/alchemist-server"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2022-07-01T13:46:54Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2017-11-17T15:29:00Z"
  }
}