CVE-2021-38148: Obsidian Obsidian Does Not Require User Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-45mx-g85m-wwm3
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-285
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2021-38148 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) obsidian does not require user vulnerability (CWE-285: Improper Authorization) affecting Obsidian libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves obsidian does not require user confirmation for non-http/https urls.. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 0.12.12.

CVE-2021-38148 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2021-38148
GHSA Identifier GHSA-45mx-g85m-wwm3
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-285: Improper Authorization
Affected Product Obsidian
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 9.8

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:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2021-38148

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

obsidian fixed: 0.12.12 
npm install obsidian@0.12.12
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 obsidian

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2021-38148, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls obsidian

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Obsidian in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 0.12.12), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls obsidian 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-285: Improper Authorization, where the product does not perform or incorrectly performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action. In Obsidian, 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

Obsidian before 0.12.12 does not require user confirmation for non-http/https URLs.

CVE-2021-38148 Affected Obsidian Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
0.12.12
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
obsidian
npm/obsidian
npm
< 0.12.12
0.12.12

References

NVD — CVE-2021-38148 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-38148
Obsidian Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/obsidianmd/obsidian-api
web.archive.org/web/20210807011714/... WEB
https://web.archive.org/web/20210807011714/https://forum.obsidian.md/t/obsidian-release-v0-12-12/21564

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2021-38148?
CVE-2021-38148 is a security vulnerability in Obsidian involving Obsidian does not require user confirmation for non-http/https URLs. under CWE-285: Improper Authorization.
Which Obsidian versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 0.12.12 across affected packages: obsidian.
What version fixes CVE-2021-38148?
Upgrading to 0.12.12 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is obsidian affected?
Yes, obsidian is affected in releases prior to 0.12.12. Upgrade your dependency to 0.12.12 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2021-38148?
CVE-2021-38148 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (CRITICAL) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2021-38148?
CVE-2021-38148 is classified under CWE-285: Improper Authorization (The product does not perform or incorrectly performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2021-38148?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls obsidian'. 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-45mx-g85m-wwm3",
  "modified" : "2024-04-22T23:22:17Z",
  "published" : "2022-05-24T19:10:22Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2021-38148" ],
  "summary" : "Obsidian does not require user confirmation for non-http/https URLs.",
  "details" : "Obsidian before 0.12.12 does not require user confirmation for non-http/https URLs.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "obsidian"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "0.12.12"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-38148"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/obsidianmd/obsidian-api"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://web.archive.org/web/20210807011714/https://forum.obsidian.md/t/obsidian-release-v0-12-12/21564"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-285" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2024-04-22T23:22:17Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2021-08-07T03:15:00Z"
  }
}