CVE-2024-21908: Tinymce Cross-Site Scripting Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-5h9g-x5rv-25wg
CVSS 6.1
CWE-79
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2024-21908 is a MODERATE (CVSS 6.1) cross-site scripting vulnerability (CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')) affecting Tinymce libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves cross-site scripting vulnerability in tinymce. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 5.9.0.

CVE-2024-21908 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2024-21908
GHSA Identifier GHSA-5h9g-x5rv-25wg
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 Tinymce
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-2024-21908

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

tinymce fixed: 5.9.0
npm install tinymce@5.9.0
TinyMCE fixed: 5.9.0
Upgrade TinyMCE to 5.9.0
tinymce/tinymce fixed: 5.9.0
Upgrade tinymce/tinymce to 5.9.0
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 tinymce

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2024-21908, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls tinymce

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Tinymce in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 5.9.0), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls tinymce 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 Tinymce, 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

### Impact A cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability was discovered in the schema validation logic of the core parser. The vulnerability allowed arbitrary JavaScript execution when inserting a specially crafted piece of content into the editor using the clipboard or editor APIs. This malicious content could then end up in content published outside the editor, if no server-side sanitization was performed. This impacts all users who are using TinyMCE 5.8.2 or lower. ### Patches This vulnerability has been patched in TinyMCE 5.9.0 by ensuring schema validation was still performed after unwrapping invalid elements. ### Workarounds To work around this vulnerability, either: - Upgrade to TinyMCE 5.9.0 or higher - Manually sanitize the content using the `BeforeSetContent` event (see below) #### Example: Manually sanitize content ```js editor.on('BeforeSetContent', function(e) { var sanitizedContent = ...; // Manually sanitize content here e.content = sanitizedContent; }); ``` ### Acknowledgements Tiny Technologies would like to thank William Bowling for discovering this vulnerability. ### References https://www.tiny.cloud/docs/release-notes/release-notes59/#securityfixes ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Email us at [infosec@tiny.cloud](mailto:infosec@tiny.cloud) * Open an issue in the [TinyMCE repo](https://github.com/tinymce/tinymce/issues)

CVE-2024-21908 Affected Tinymce Versions

3 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
5.9.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
tinymce
npm
< 5.9.0
5.9.0
TinyMCE
NuGet
< 5.9.0
5.9.0
tinymce/tinymce
Packagist
< 5.9.0
5.9.0

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2024-21908?
CVE-2024-21908 is a security vulnerability in Tinymce involving Cross-site scripting vulnerability in TinyMCE under CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting').
Which Tinymce versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 5.9.0 across affected packages: tinymce, TinyMCE, tinymce/tinymce.
What version fixes CVE-2024-21908?
Upgrading to 5.9.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is tinymce affected?
Yes, tinymce is affected in releases prior to 5.9.0. Upgrade your dependency to 5.9.0 or later.
Is TinyMCE affected?
Yes, TinyMCE is affected in releases prior to 5.9.0. Upgrade your dependency to 5.9.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2024-21908?
CVE-2024-21908 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-2024-21908?
CVE-2024-21908 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-2024-21908?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls tinymce'. 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
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-5h9g-x5rv-25wg",
  "modified" : "2024-01-03T22:34:18Z",
  "published" : "2021-10-22T16:24:02Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2024-21908" ],
  "summary" : "Cross-site scripting vulnerability in TinyMCE",
  "details" : "### Impact\nA cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability was discovered in the schema validation logic of the core parser. The vulnerability allowed arbitrary JavaScript execution when inserting a specially crafted piece of content into the editor using the clipboard or editor APIs. This malicious content could then end up in content published outside the editor, if no server-side sanitization was performed. This impacts all users who are using TinyMCE 5.8.2 or lower.\n\n### Patches\nThis vulnerability has been patched in TinyMCE 5.9.0 by ensuring schema validation was still performed after unwrapping invalid elements.\n\n### Workarounds\nTo work around this vulnerability, either:\n- Upgrade to TinyMCE 5.9.0 or higher\n- Manually sanitize the content using the `BeforeSetContent` event (see below)\n\n#### Example: Manually sanitize content\n```js\neditor.on('BeforeSetContent', function(e) {\n  var sanitizedContent = ...; // Manually sanitize content here\n  e.content = sanitizedContent;\n});\n```\n\n### Acknowledgements\nTiny Technologies would like to thank William Bowling for discovering this vulnerability.\n\n### References\nhttps://www.tiny.cloud/docs/release-notes/release-notes59/#securityfixes\n\n### For more information\nIf you have any questions or comments about this advisory:\n* Email us at [infosec@tiny.cloud](mailto:infosec@tiny.cloud)\n* Open an issue in the [TinyMCE repo](https://github.com/tinymce/tinymce/issues)",
  "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" : "tinymce"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "5.9.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "NuGet",
      "name" : "TinyMCE"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "5.9.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Packagist",
      "name" : "tinymce/tinymce"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "5.9.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/tinymce/tinymce/security/advisories/GHSA-5h9g-x5rv-25wg"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/tinymce/tinymce"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.tiny.cloud/docs/release-notes/release-notes59/#securityfixes"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-79" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2021-10-22T13:49:23Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}