CVE-2023-1879: Thorsten/phpmyfaq Cross-Site Scripting Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-m9qm-m5w5-9pgj
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CVSS 4.7
CWE-79
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2023-1879 is a MODERATE (CVSS 4.7) cross-site scripting vulnerability (CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')) affecting Thorsten/phpmyfaq libraries in the Packagist ecosystem. The issue involves thorsten/phpmyfaq vulnerable to stored cross-site scripting (xss) via updatecategory parameter. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 3.1.12.

CVE-2023-1879 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2023-1879
GHSA Identifier GHSA-m9qm-m5w5-9pgj
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 4.7
CWE Classification CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')
Affected Product Thorsten/phpmyfaq
Package Ecosystem Packagist
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 4.7

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

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

How to Fix CVE-2023-1879

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

thorsten/phpmyfaq fixed: 3.1.12 
Upgrade thorsten/phpmyfaq to 3.1.12
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 thorsten/phpmyfaq

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your application is affected by CVE-2023-1879, inspect your project dependencies for Thorsten/phpmyfaq:

inspect dependencies for thorsten/phpmyfaq

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Thorsten/phpmyfaq in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 3.1.12), 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-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting'), where the product does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes user-controllable input before it is placed in output that is used as a web page that is served to other users. In Thorsten/phpmyfaq, 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

thorsten/phpmyfaq prior to 3.1.12 is vulnerable to stored cross-site scripting (XSS) because it fails to sanitize user input in the updatecategory parameter. This has been fixed in 3.1.12.

CVE-2023-1879 Affected Thorsten/phpmyfaq Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
3.1.12
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
thorsten/phpmyfaq
 Packagist
< 3.1.12
3.1.12

References

NVD — CVE-2023-1879 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-1879
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/thorsten/phpMyFAQ/commit/a2642195e9fcb9a6f151bfaa4ff20bf1b905da2e
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/thorsten/phpmyfaq/commit/0dc8e527c375007cd4b8dbf61f7167393a6f6e91
Thorsten/phpmyfaq Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/thorsten/phpMyFAQ
huntr.dev/bounties/1dc7f818-c... WEB
https://huntr.dev/bounties/1dc7f818-c8ea-4f80-b000-31b48a426334

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2023-1879?
CVE-2023-1879 is a security vulnerability in Thorsten/phpmyfaq involving thorsten/phpmyfaq vulnerable to stored cross-site scripting (XSS) via updatecategory parameter under CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting').
Which Thorsten/phpmyfaq versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 3.1.12 across affected packages: thorsten/phpmyfaq.
What version fixes CVE-2023-1879?
Upgrading to 3.1.12 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is thorsten/phpmyfaq affected?
Yes, thorsten/phpmyfaq is affected in releases prior to 3.1.12. Upgrade your dependency to 3.1.12 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2023-1879?
CVE-2023-1879 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 4.7 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2023-1879?
CVE-2023-1879 is classified under CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') (The product does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes user-controllable input before it is placed in output that is used as a web page that is served to other users.).
How can I check Packagist dependencies for CVE-2023-1879?
Run the dependency tree command: 'inspect dependencies for thorsten/phpmyfaq'. 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-m9qm-m5w5-9pgj",
  "modified" : "2023-04-06T15:07:04Z",
  "published" : "2023-04-05T18:30:18Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2023-1879" ],
  "summary" : "thorsten/phpmyfaq vulnerable to stored cross-site scripting (XSS) via updatecategory parameter",
  "details" : "thorsten/phpmyfaq prior to 3.1.12 is vulnerable to stored cross-site scripting (XSS) because it fails to sanitize user input in the updatecategory parameter. This has been fixed in 3.1.12.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Packagist",
      "name" : "thorsten/phpmyfaq"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "3.1.12"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-1879"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/thorsten/phpMyFAQ/commit/a2642195e9fcb9a6f151bfaa4ff20bf1b905da2e"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/thorsten/phpmyfaq/commit/0dc8e527c375007cd4b8dbf61f7167393a6f6e91"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/thorsten/phpMyFAQ"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://huntr.dev/bounties/1dc7f818-c8ea-4f80-b000-31b48a426334"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-79" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2023-04-06T15:07:04Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2023-04-05T17:15:00Z"
  }
}