CVE-2023-38503: Directus Incorrect Permission Checking For GraphQL Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-gggm-66rh-pp98
Share
CVSS 5.7
CWE-200 CWE-863
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2023-38503 is a MODERATE (CVSS 5.7) incorrect permission checking for graphql vulnerability (CWE-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor) affecting Directus libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves incorrect permission checking for graphql subscriptions. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 10.5.0.

CVE-2023-38503 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2023-38503
GHSA Identifier GHSA-gggm-66rh-pp98
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 5.7
CWE Classification CWE-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor
Affected Product Directus
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 5.7

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:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N).

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

How to Fix CVE-2023-38503

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

directus fixed: 10.5.0 
npm install directus@10.5.0
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

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

npm ls directus

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2023-38503, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls directus

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Directus in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 10.5.0), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls directus command inspects dependencies declared in your package.json and lockfile; it does not perform automated runtime dynamic scanning.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor, where the product exposes sensitive information to an actor that is not explicitly authorized to have access to that information. In Directus, 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

### Summary CWE-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor Access to information you should not have access to when the permissions rely on `$CURRENT_USER` for filtering. ### Details The permission filters (i.e. `user_created IS $CURRENT_USER`) are not properly checked when using GraphQL subscription resulting in unauthorized users getting event on their subscription which they should not be receiving according to the permissions. This can be any collection but out-of-the box the `directus_users` collection is configured with such a permissions filter allowing you to get updates for other users when changes happen. An example: ```graphql subscription { directus_users_mutated { event data { id last_access last_page } } } ``` ### Patches https://github.com/directus/directus/pull/19155 ### Workarounds Disable GraphQL Subscriptions ### References

CVE-2023-38503 Affected Directus Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
10.5.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
directus
npm/directus
npm
≥ 10.3.0
< 10.5.0
10.5.0

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/directus/directus/security/advisories/GHSA-gggm-66rh-pp98
NVD — CVE-2023-38503 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-38503
Directus Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/directus/directus/pull/19155
Directus Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/directus/directus

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2023-38503?
CVE-2023-38503 is a security vulnerability in Directus involving Incorrect Permission Checking for GraphQL Subscriptions under CWE-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor.
Which Directus versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 10.5.0 across affected packages: directus.
What version fixes CVE-2023-38503?
Upgrading to 10.5.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is directus affected?
Yes, directus is affected in releases prior to 10.5.0. Upgrade your dependency to 10.5.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2023-38503?
CVE-2023-38503 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 5.7 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2023-38503?
CVE-2023-38503 is classified under CWE-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor (The product exposes sensitive information to an actor that is not explicitly authorized to have access to that information.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2023-38503?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls directus'. 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-gggm-66rh-pp98",
  "modified" : "2026-01-16T21:51:02Z",
  "published" : "2023-07-25T23:31:10Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2023-38503" ],
  "summary" : "Incorrect Permission Checking for GraphQL Subscriptions",
  "details" : "### Summary\n\nCWE-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor\nAccess to information you should not have access to when the permissions rely on `$CURRENT_USER` for filtering.\n\n### Details\n\nThe permission filters (i.e. `user_created IS $CURRENT_USER`) are not properly checked when using GraphQL subscription resulting in unauthorized users getting event on their subscription which they should not be receiving according to the permissions.\nThis can be any collection but out-of-the box the `directus_users` collection is configured with such a permissions filter allowing you to get updates for other users when changes happen.\n\nAn example:\n```graphql\nsubscription {\n  directus_users_mutated {\n    event\n    data {\n      id\n      last_access\n      last_page\n    }\n  }\n}\n```\n\n### Patches\nhttps://github.com/directus/directus/pull/19155\n\n### Workarounds\nDisable GraphQL Subscriptions\n\n### References",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "directus"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "10.3.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "10.5.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/directus/directus/security/advisories/GHSA-gggm-66rh-pp98"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-38503"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/directus/directus/pull/19155"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/directus/directus"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-200", "CWE-863" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2023-07-25T23:31:10Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2023-07-25T23:15:10Z"
  }
}