CVE-2020-23849: Jsoneditor Cross-Site Scripting Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-q854-j362-cfq9
Share
CVSS 6.1
CWE-79
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-23849 is a MODERATE (CVSS 6.1) cross-site scripting vulnerability (CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')) affecting Jsoneditor libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves cross-site scripting in jsoneditor. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 9.0.2.

CVE-2020-23849 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-23849
GHSA Identifier GHSA-q854-j362-cfq9
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 6.1
CWE Classification CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')
Affected Product Jsoneditor
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 6.1

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:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N).

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

How to Fix CVE-2020-23849

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

jsoneditor fixed: 9.0.2 
npm install jsoneditor@9.0.2
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 jsoneditor

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2020-23849, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls jsoneditor

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Jsoneditor in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 9.0.2), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls jsoneditor 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-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 Jsoneditor, 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

Stored XSS was discovered in the tree mode of jsoneditor before 9.0.2 through injecting and executing JavaScript.

CVE-2020-23849 Affected Jsoneditor Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
9.0.2
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
jsoneditor
npm/jsoneditor
npm
< 9.0.2
9.0.2

References

NVD — CVE-2020-23849 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-23849
Jsoneditor Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/josdejong/jsoneditor/issues/1029
Jsoneditor Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/josdejong/jsoneditor

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-23849?
CVE-2020-23849 is a security vulnerability in Jsoneditor involving Cross-site Scripting in jsoneditor under CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting').
Which Jsoneditor versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 9.0.2 across affected packages: jsoneditor.
What version fixes CVE-2020-23849?
Upgrading to 9.0.2 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is jsoneditor affected?
Yes, jsoneditor is affected in releases prior to 9.0.2. Upgrade your dependency to 9.0.2 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-23849?
CVE-2020-23849 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 6.1 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2020-23849?
CVE-2020-23849 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 npm dependencies for CVE-2020-23849?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls jsoneditor'. 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-q854-j362-cfq9",
  "modified" : "2021-10-08T21:54:35Z",
  "published" : "2021-10-12T16:22:30Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-23849" ],
  "summary" : "Cross-site Scripting in jsoneditor",
  "details" : "Stored XSS was discovered in the tree mode of jsoneditor before 9.0.2 through injecting and executing JavaScript.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "jsoneditor"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "9.0.2"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-23849"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/josdejong/jsoneditor/issues/1029"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/josdejong/jsoneditor"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-79" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2021-10-08T21:54:35Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2021-01-11T14:15:00Z"
  }
}