Summary
Potential CSV export data leak
Impact
In ActiveAdmin versions prior to 2.12.0, a concurrency issue was found that could allow a malicious actor to be able to access potentially private data that belongs to another user.
The bug affects the functionality to export data as CSV files, and was caused by a variable holding the collection to be exported being shared across threads and not properly synchronized.
The attacker would need access to the same ActiveAdmin application as the victim, and could exploit the issue by timing their request immediately before when they know someone else will request a CSV (e.g. via phishing) or request CSVs frequently and hope someone else makes a concurrent request.
CVE-2023-50448 has a CVSS score of 8.4 (High). The vector is network-reachable, high privileges required, and user interaction required. 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 (2.12.0); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.
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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Versions 2.12.0 and above fixed the problem by completely removing the shared state.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2023-50448? CVE-2023-50448 is a high-severity security vulnerability in activeadmin (rubygems), affecting versions < 2.12.0. It is fixed in 2.12.0.
- How severe is CVE-2023-50448? CVE-2023-50448 has a CVSS score of 8.4 (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 activeadmin are affected by CVE-2023-50448? activeadmin (rubygems) versions < 2.12.0 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2023-50448? Yes. CVE-2023-50448 is fixed in 2.12.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2023-50448 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2023-50448 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-2023-50448 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-2023-50448? Upgrade
activeadminto 2.12.0 or later.