CVE-2019-10780: Bibtex ruby BibTeX-Ruby Vulnerable To OS Command Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-c5r5-7pfh-6qg6
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-78
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2019-10780 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) bibtex-ruby vulnerable to os command vulnerability (CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')) affecting Bibtex ruby libraries in the RubyGems ecosystem. The issue involves bibtex-ruby vulnerable to os command injection. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 5.1.0.

CVE-2019-10780 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2019-10780
GHSA Identifier GHSA-c5r5-7pfh-6qg6
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')
Affected Product Bibtex ruby
Package Ecosystem RubyGems
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:3.1/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-2019-10780

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

bibtex-ruby fixed: 5.1.0 
Upgrade bibtex-ruby to 5.1.0
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 bibtex-ruby

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your application is affected by CVE-2019-10780, inspect your project dependencies for Bibtex ruby:

inspect dependencies for bibtex-ruby

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Bibtex ruby in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 5.1.0), 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 CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection'), where the product constructs all or part of an os command using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the intended os command when it is sent to a downstream component. In Bibtex ruby, 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

BibTeX-ruby before 5.1.0 allows shell command injection due to unsanitized user input being passed directly to the built-in Ruby `Kernel.open` method through BibTeX.open.

CVE-2019-10780 Affected Bibtex ruby Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
5.1.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
bibtex-ruby
gem/bibtex-ruby
RubyGems
< 5.1.0
5.1.0

References

NVD — CVE-2019-10780 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-10780
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/inukshuk/bibtex-ruby/commit/14406f4460f4e1ecabd25ca94f809b3ea7c5fb11
GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-c5r5-7pfh-6qg6
Bibtex ruby Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/inukshuk/bibtex-ruby
Bibtex ruby Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/rubysec/ruby-advisory-db/blob/master/gems/bibtex-ruby/CVE-2019-10780.yml
snyk.io/vuln/snyk-ruby-bibt... WEB
https://snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-RUBY-BIBTEXRUBY-542602

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2019-10780?
CVE-2019-10780 is a security vulnerability in Bibtex ruby involving BibTeX-Ruby vulnerable to OS command injection under CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection').
Which Bibtex ruby versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 5.1.0 across affected packages: bibtex-ruby.
What version fixes CVE-2019-10780?
Upgrading to 5.1.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is bibtex-ruby affected?
Yes, bibtex-ruby is affected in releases prior to 5.1.0. Upgrade your dependency to 5.1.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2019-10780?
CVE-2019-10780 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (CRITICAL) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2019-10780?
CVE-2019-10780 is classified under CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection') (The product constructs all or part of an OS command using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify the intended OS command when it is sent to a downstream component.).
How can I check RubyGems dependencies for CVE-2019-10780?
Run the dependency tree command: 'inspect dependencies for bibtex-ruby'. 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-c5r5-7pfh-6qg6",
  "modified" : "2023-08-28T19:12:01Z",
  "published" : "2020-02-14T23:10:01Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2019-10780" ],
  "summary" : "BibTeX-Ruby vulnerable to OS command injection",
  "details" : "BibTeX-ruby before 5.1.0 allows shell command injection due to unsanitized user input being passed directly to the built-in Ruby `Kernel.open` method through BibTeX.open.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "RubyGems",
      "name" : "bibtex-ruby"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "5.1.0"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 5.0.1"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-10780"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/inukshuk/bibtex-ruby/commit/14406f4460f4e1ecabd25ca94f809b3ea7c5fb11"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-c5r5-7pfh-6qg6"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/inukshuk/bibtex-ruby"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/rubysec/ruby-advisory-db/blob/master/gems/bibtex-ruby/CVE-2019-10780.yml"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://snyk.io/vuln/SNYK-RUBY-BIBTEXRUBY-542602"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-78" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2020-02-13T20:45:35Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}