Summary
Reflective Cross-site Scripting Vulnerability in twitter-bootstrap-rails
The twitter-bootstrap-rails Gem for Rails contains a flaw that enables a
reflected cross-site scripting (XSS) attack. This flaw exists because the
bootstrap_flash helper method does not validate input when handling flash
messages before returning it to users. This may allow a context-dependent
attacker to create a specially crafted request that would execute arbitrary
script code in a user's browser session within the trust relationship between
their browser and the server.
Impact
Untrusted input is rendered as active markup in a victim's browser, which can run script in their session. Typical impact: session or credential theft, and actions taken as the user.
Affected versions
Security releases
Kodem intelligence
Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.
Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.
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Kodem Kai can prioritize this vulnerability in your dependency tree and generate a fix recommendation.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2014-4920? CVE-2014-4920 is a medium-severity cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in twitter-bootstrap-rails (rubygems), affecting versions < 3.2.0. It is fixed in 3.2.0. Untrusted input is rendered as active markup in a victim's browser, which can run script in their session.
- Which versions of twitter-bootstrap-rails are affected by CVE-2014-4920? twitter-bootstrap-rails (rubygems) versions < 3.2.0 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2014-4920? Yes. CVE-2014-4920 is fixed in 3.2.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2014-4920 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2014-4920 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
- What actually determines whether CVE-2014-4920 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
- How do I fix CVE-2014-4920? Upgrade
twitter-bootstrap-railsto 3.2.0 or later.