What is CVE-2023-22491?

CVE-2023-22491 is a high-severity improper input validation vulnerability in gatsby-transformer-remark (npm), affecting versions >= 6.0.0, < 6.3.2. It is fixed in 6.3.2, 5.25.1. The application does not adequately validate input before processing it, allowing unexpected values to reach sensitive code paths.

How severe is CVE-2023-22491?

CVE-2023-22491 has a CVSS score of 8.1 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.

Which versions of gatsby-transformer-remark are affected by CVE-2023-22491?

gatsby-transformer-remark (npm) versions >= 6.0.0, < 6.3.2 is affected.

Is there a fix for CVE-2023-22491?

Yes. CVE-2023-22491 is fixed in 6.3.2, 5.25.1. Upgrade to this version or later.

Is CVE-2023-22491 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2023-22491 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.

What actually determines whether CVE-2023-22491 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-2023-22491?

Upgrade: gatsby-transformer-remark to 6.3.2 or later, gatsby-transformer-remark to 5.25.1 or later.

CVE-2023-22491 in gatsby-transformer-remark

Q: How severe is CVE-2023-22491?

CVE-2023-22491 has a CVSS score of 8.1 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.

Q: Which versions of gatsby-transformer-remark are affected by CVE-2023-22491?

gatsby-transformer-remark (npm) versions >= 6.0.0, < 6.3.2 is affected.

Q: Is there a fix for CVE-2023-22491?

Yes. CVE-2023-22491 is fixed in 6.3.2, 5.25.1. Upgrade to this version or later.

Q: Is CVE-2023-22491 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2023-22491 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.

Q: What actually determines whether CVE-2023-22491 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.

Q: How do I fix CVE-2023-22491?

Upgrade: gatsby-transformer-remark to 6.3.2 or later, gatsby-transformer-remark to 5.25.1 or later.

Summary

gatsby-transformer-remark has possible unsanitized JavaScript code injection

Workarounds

If an older version of gatsby-transformer-remark must be used, input passed into the plugin should be sanitized ahead of processing.

We encourage projects to upgrade to the latest major release branch for all Gatsby plugins to ensure the latest security updates and bug fixes are received in a timely manner.

For more information

Email us at [email protected].

Impact

The gatsby-transformer-remark plugin prior to versions 5.25.1 and 6.3.2 passes input through to the gray-matter npm package, which is vulnerable to JavaScript injection in its default configuration, unless input is sanitized. The vulnerability is present in gatsby-transformer-remark when passing input in data mode (querying MarkdownRemark nodes via GraphQL). Injected JavaScript executes in the context of the build server.

To exploit this vulnerability untrusted/unsanitized input would need to be sourced by or added into a file processed by gatsby-transformer-remark. The following payload demonstrates a vulnerable configuration:

---js
((require("child_process")).execSync("id >> /tmp/rce"))
---

The application does not adequately validate input before processing it, allowing unexpected values to reach sensitive code paths. Typical impact: varies by context: data corruption, logic bypass, or denial of service.

CVE-2023-22491 has a CVSS score of 8.1 (High). The vector is network-reachable, low privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (6.3.2, 5.25.1); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Affected versions

gatsby-transformer-remark (>= 6.0.0, < 6.3.2) gatsby-transformer-remark (< 5.25.1)

Security releases

gatsby-transformer-remark → 6.3.2 (npm) gatsby-transformer-remark → 5.25.1 (npm)

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.

Already deployed Kodem?

See it in your environment New to Kodem? Get a demo →

Remediation advice

A patch has been introduced in [email protected] and [email protected] which mitigates the issue by disabling the gray-matter JavaScript Frontmatter engine. The patch introduces a new option, JSFrontmatterEngine which is set to false by default. When setting JSFrontmatterEngine to true, input passed to gatsby-plugin-mdx must be sanitized before processing to avoid a security risk. Warnings are displayed when enabling JSFrontmatterEngine to true or if it appears that the MarkdownRemark input is attempting to use the Frontmatter engine.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2023-22491? CVE-2023-22491 is a high-severity improper input validation vulnerability in gatsby-transformer-remark (npm), affecting versions >= 6.0.0, < 6.3.2. It is fixed in 6.3.2, 5.25.1. The application does not adequately validate input before processing it, allowing unexpected values to reach sensitive code paths.
How severe is CVE-2023-22491? CVE-2023-22491 has a CVSS score of 8.1 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
Which versions of gatsby-transformer-remark are affected by CVE-2023-22491? gatsby-transformer-remark (npm) versions >= 6.0.0, < 6.3.2 is affected.
Is there a fix for CVE-2023-22491? Yes. CVE-2023-22491 is fixed in 6.3.2, 5.25.1. Upgrade to this version or later.
Is CVE-2023-22491 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2023-22491 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-2023-22491 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-2023-22491?
- Upgrade gatsby-transformer-remark to 6.3.2 or later
- Upgrade gatsby-transformer-remark to 5.25.1 or later