CVE-2021-4315: PsiTurk NYUCCL PsiTurk IS Vulnerable To Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-9mq4-9556-6qxq
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CVSS 8.8
CWE-94 CWE-1336
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2021-4315 is a HIGH (CVSS 8.8) nyuccl psiturk is vulnerable to vulnerability (CWE-94: Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection')) affecting PsiTurk libraries in the PyPI ecosystem. The issue involves nyuccl psiturk is vulnerable to improper neutralization of special elements. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 3.2.1.

CVE-2021-4315 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2021-4315
GHSA Identifier GHSA-9mq4-9556-6qxq
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 8.8
CWE Classification CWE-94: Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection')
Affected Product PsiTurk
Package Ecosystem PyPI
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 8.8

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required Low (PR:L)
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-2021-4315

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

psiTurk fixed: 3.2.1 
pip install psiTurk>=3.2.1
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

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

pip show psiTurk

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Python environment is affected by CVE-2021-4315, inspect your installed packages using pip:

pip show psiTurk

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of PsiTurk in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 3.2.1), your application is affected.

Note: The pip show psiTurk command checks currently installed packages in your active Python environment.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-94: Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection'), where the product constructs all or part of a code segment using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the syntax or behavior of the intended code segment. In PsiTurk, 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

A vulnerability has been found in NYUCCL psiTurk up to 3.2.0 and classified as critical. This vulnerability affects unknown code of the file psiturk/experiment.py. The manipulation of the argument mode leads to improper neutralization of special elements used in a template engine. The exploit has been disclosed to the public and may be used. Upgrading to version 3.2.1 is able to address this issue. The name of the patch is 47787e15cecd66f2aa87687bf852ae0194a4335f. It is recommended to upgrade the affected component. The identifier of this vulnerability is VDB-219676.

CVE-2021-4315 Affected PsiTurk Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
3.2.1
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
psiTurk
pypi/psiTurk
PyPI
< 3.2.1
3.2.1

References

NVD — CVE-2021-4315 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-4315
PsiTurk Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/NYUCCL/psiTurk/pull/517
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/NYUCCL/psiTurk/commit/47787e15cecd66f2aa87687bf852ae0194a4335f
PsiTurk Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/NYUCCL/psiTurk
PsiTurk Release RELEASE
https://github.com/NYUCCL/psiTurk/releases/tag/v3.2.1
PsiTurk Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/psiturk/PYSEC-2023-43.yaml
vuldb.com/ WEB
https://vuldb.com/?ctiid.219676
vuldb.com/ WEB
https://vuldb.com/?id.219676

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2021-4315?
CVE-2021-4315 is a security vulnerability in PsiTurk involving NYUCCL psiTurk IS vulnerable to Improper Neutralization of Special Elements under CWE-94: Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection').
Which PsiTurk versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 3.2.1 across affected packages: psiTurk.
What version fixes CVE-2021-4315?
Upgrading to 3.2.1 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is psiTurk affected?
Yes, psiTurk is affected in releases prior to 3.2.1. Upgrade your dependency to 3.2.1 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2021-4315?
CVE-2021-4315 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.8 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2021-4315?
CVE-2021-4315 is classified under CWE-94: Improper Control of Generation of Code ('Code Injection') (The product constructs all or part of a code segment using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the syntax or behavior of the intended code segment.).
How can I check PyPI dependencies for CVE-2021-4315?
Run the dependency tree command: 'pip show psiTurk'. 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-9mq4-9556-6qxq",
  "modified" : "2024-10-18T22:01:45Z",
  "published" : "2023-01-29T00:30:34Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2021-4315" ],
  "summary" : "NYUCCL psiTurk IS vulnerable to Improper Neutralization of Special Elements",
  "details" : "A vulnerability has been found in NYUCCL psiTurk up to 3.2.0 and classified as critical. This vulnerability affects unknown code of the file psiturk/experiment.py. The manipulation of the argument mode leads to improper neutralization of special elements used in a template engine. The exploit has been disclosed to the public and may be used. Upgrading to version 3.2.1 is able to address this issue. The name of the patch is 47787e15cecd66f2aa87687bf852ae0194a4335f. It is recommended to upgrade the affected component. The identifier of this vulnerability is VDB-219676.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "psiTurk"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "3.2.1"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-4315"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/NYUCCL/psiTurk/pull/517"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/NYUCCL/psiTurk/commit/47787e15cecd66f2aa87687bf852ae0194a4335f"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/NYUCCL/psiTurk"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/NYUCCL/psiTurk/releases/tag/v3.2.1"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/psiturk/PYSEC-2023-43.yaml"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://vuldb.com/?ctiid.219676"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://vuldb.com/?id.219676"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-1336", "CWE-94" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2023-01-31T22:53:23Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2023-01-28T23:15:00Z"
  }
}