CVE-2017-9050: Nokogiri Out-of-bounds Read Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-8c56-cpmw-89x7
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CVSS 7.5
CWE-125
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2017-9050 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) out-of-bounds read vulnerability (CWE-125: Out-of-bounds Read) affecting Nokogiri libraries in the RubyGems ecosystem. The issue involves out-of-bounds read in nokogiri. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.8.1.

CVE-2017-9050 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2017-9050
GHSA Identifier GHSA-8c56-cpmw-89x7
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-125: Out-of-bounds Read
Affected Product Nokogiri
Package Ecosystem RubyGems
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.5

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 None (C:N)
Integrity None (I:N)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2017-9050

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

nokogiri fixed: 1.8.1 
Upgrade nokogiri to 1.8.1
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 nokogiri

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your application is affected by CVE-2017-9050, inspect your project dependencies for Nokogiri:

inspect dependencies for nokogiri

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Nokogiri in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.8.1), 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-125: Out-of-bounds Read, where the product reads data past the end, or before the beginning, of the intended buffer. In Nokogiri, 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

libxml2 20904-GITv2.9.4-16-g0741801 is vulnerable to a heap-based buffer over-read in the xmlDictAddString function in dict.c. This vulnerability causes programs that use libxml2, such as PHP, to crash. This vulnerability exists because of an incomplete fix for CVE-2016-1839. GitHub is notifying on nokogiri as uses libxml2.

CVE-2017-9050 Affected Nokogiri Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
1.8.1
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
nokogiri
gem/nokogiri
RubyGems
< 1.8.1
1.8.1

References

NVD — CVE-2017-9050 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-9050
Nokogiri Security Information SECURITY
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/201711-01
Nokogiri Security Information SECURITY
http://www.debian.org/security/2017/dsa-3952
Nokogiri Security Information SECURITY
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2017/05/15/1

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2017-9050?
CVE-2017-9050 is a security vulnerability in Nokogiri involving Out-of-bounds read in nokogiri under CWE-125: Out-of-bounds Read.
Which Nokogiri versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 1.8.1 across affected packages: nokogiri.
What version fixes CVE-2017-9050?
Upgrading to 1.8.1 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is nokogiri affected?
Yes, nokogiri is affected in releases prior to 1.8.1. Upgrade your dependency to 1.8.1 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2017-9050?
CVE-2017-9050 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2017-9050?
CVE-2017-9050 is classified under CWE-125: Out-of-bounds Read (The product reads data past the end, or before the beginning, of the intended buffer.).
How can I check RubyGems dependencies for CVE-2017-9050?
Run the dependency tree command: 'inspect dependencies for nokogiri'. 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-8c56-cpmw-89x7",
  "modified" : "2021-06-30T18:05:23Z",
  "published" : "2017-12-13T21:38:24Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2017-9050" ],
  "summary" : "Out-of-bounds read in nokogiri",
  "details" : "libxml2 20904-GITv2.9.4-16-g0741801 is vulnerable to a heap-based buffer over-read in the xmlDictAddString function in dict.c. This vulnerability causes programs that use libxml2, such as PHP, to crash. This vulnerability exists because of an incomplete fix for CVE-2016-1839.  GitHub is notifying on nokogiri as uses libxml2.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "RubyGems",
      "name" : "nokogiri"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.8.1"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-9050"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/201711-01"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://www.debian.org/security/2017/dsa-3952"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2017/05/15/1"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-125" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2020-06-16T21:25:13Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2017-05-18T06:29:00Z"
  }
}