CVE-2023-5115: Ansible Ansible Symlink Attack Vulnerability Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-jpvw-p8pr-9g2x
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CVSS 6.3
CWE-36 CWE-22
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2023-5115 is a MODERATE (CVSS 6.3) ansible symlink attack vulnerability vulnerability (CWE-36: Absolute Path Traversal) affecting Ansible libraries in the PyPI ecosystem. The issue involves ansible symlink attack vulnerability. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 8.5.0.

CVE-2023-5115 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2023-5115
GHSA Identifier GHSA-jpvw-p8pr-9g2x
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 6.3
CWE Classification CWE-36: Absolute Path Traversal
Affected Product Ansible
Package Ecosystem PyPI
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 6.3

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:L/I:H/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 Low (C:L)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability None (A:N)

How to Fix CVE-2023-5115

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

ansible fixed: 8.5.0 
pip install ansible>=8.5.0
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

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

pip show ansible

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Python environment is affected by CVE-2023-5115, inspect your installed packages using pip:

pip show ansible

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Ansible in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 8.5.0), your application is affected.

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

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-36: Absolute Path Traversal, where the product uses external input to construct a pathname that should be within a restricted directory, but it does not properly neutralize absolute path sequences such as "/abs/path" that can resolve to a location that is outside of that directory. In Ansible, 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

An absolute path traversal attack exists in the Ansible automation platform. This flaw allows an attacker to craft a malicious Ansible role and make the victim execute the role. A symlink can be used to overwrite a file outside of the extraction path.

CVE-2023-5115 Affected Ansible Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
8.5.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
ansible
pypi/ansible
PyPI
< 8.5.0
8.5.0

References

NVD — CVE-2023-5115 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-5115
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/1e930684bc0a76ec3d094cd326738ad26416541c
access.redhat.com/errata/rhsa-2023:57... WEB
https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:5701
access.redhat.com/errata/rhsa-2023:57... WEB
https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:5758
Ansible Security Information SECURITY
https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2023-5115
bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi WEB
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2233810
Ansible Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/ansible-community/ansible-build-data/blob/16d36538b96c65d9e0e28d89781361b69857ac0e/8/CHANGELOG-v8.rst#L221
Ansible Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/ansible/ansible
lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce... WEB
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2023/12/msg00018.html

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2023-5115?
CVE-2023-5115 is a security vulnerability in Ansible involving Ansible symlink attack vulnerability under CWE-36: Absolute Path Traversal.
Which Ansible versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 8.5.0 across affected packages: ansible.
What version fixes CVE-2023-5115?
Upgrading to 8.5.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is ansible affected?
Yes, ansible is affected in releases prior to 8.5.0. Upgrade your dependency to 8.5.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2023-5115?
CVE-2023-5115 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 6.3 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2023-5115?
CVE-2023-5115 is classified under CWE-36: Absolute Path Traversal (The product uses external input to construct a pathname that should be within a restricted directory, but it does not properly neutralize absolute path sequences such as "/abs/path" that can resolve to a location that is outside of that directory.).
How can I check PyPI dependencies for CVE-2023-5115?
Run the dependency tree command: 'pip show ansible'. 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-jpvw-p8pr-9g2x",
  "modified" : "2024-12-06T18:06:32Z",
  "published" : "2023-12-28T21:30:37Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2023-5115" ],
  "summary" : "Ansible symlink attack vulnerability",
  "details" : "An absolute path traversal attack exists in the Ansible automation platform. This flaw allows an attacker to craft a malicious Ansible role and make the victim execute the role. A symlink can be used to overwrite a file outside of the extraction path.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "ansible"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "8.5.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-5115"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/1e930684bc0a76ec3d094cd326738ad26416541c"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:5701"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:5758"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2023-5115"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2233810"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ansible-community/ansible-build-data/blob/16d36538b96c65d9e0e28d89781361b69857ac0e/8/CHANGELOG-v8.rst#L221"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ansible/ansible"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2023/12/msg00018.html"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-22", "CWE-36" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2023-12-29T18:19:35Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2023-12-18T14:15:10Z"
  }
}