CVE-2023-28362

Actionpack has possible cross-site scripting vulnerability via User Supplied Values to redirect_to

The redirect_to method in Rails allows provided values to contain characters which are not legal in an HTTP header value. This results in the potential for downstream services which enforce RFC compliance on HTTP response headers to remove the assigned Location header. This vulnerability has been assigned the CVE identifier CVE-2023-28362.

Versions Affected: All. Not affected: None Fixed Versions: 7.0.5.1, 6.1.7.4

Releases

The FIXED releases are available at the normal locations.

Workarounds

Avoid providing user supplied URLs with arbitrary schemes to the redirect_to method.

This introduces the potential for a Cross-site-scripting (XSS) payload to be delivered on the now static redirection page. Note that this both requires user interaction and for a Rails app to be configured to allow redirects to external hosts (defaults to false in Rails >= 7.0.x).

CVE-2023-28362 has a CVSS score of 4.0 (Medium). The vector is requires local access, no 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 (6.1.7.4, 7.0.5.1); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Kodem intelligence

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1. What is CVE-2023-28362? CVE-2023-28362 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in actionpack (rubygems), affecting versions < 6.1.7.4. It is fixed in 6.1.7.4, 7.0.5.1.
2. How severe is CVE-2023-28362? CVE-2023-28362 has a CVSS score of 4.0 (Medium). 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.
3. Which versions of actionpack are affected by CVE-2023-28362? actionpack (rubygems) versions < 6.1.7.4 is affected.
4. Is there a fix for CVE-2023-28362? Yes. CVE-2023-28362 is fixed in 6.1.7.4, 7.0.5.1. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is CVE-2023-28362 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2023-28362 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
6. What actually determines whether CVE-2023-28362 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.
7. How do I fix CVE-2023-28362?
   • Upgrade actionpack to 6.1.7.4 or later
   • Upgrade actionpack to 7.0.5.1 or later

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