Summary
Affected packages
The vulnerability has been discovered in Code Snippet GeSHi plugin. All integrators that use GeSHi syntax highlighter on the backend side can be affected.
Acknowledgements
The CKEditor 4 team would like to thank Jiasheng He from Qihoo 360 for recognizing and reporting this vulnerability.
For more information
Email us at [email protected] if you have any questions or comments about this advisory.
Impact
A potential vulnerability has been discovered in CKEditor 4 Code Snippet GeSHi plugin. The vulnerability allowed a reflected XSS attack by exploiting a flaw in the GeSHi syntax highlighter library hosted by the victim.
The GeSHi library was included as a vendor dependency in CKEditor 4 source files. In a specific scenario, an attacker could craft a malicious script that could be executed by sending a request to the GeSHi library hosted on a PHP web server.
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.
CVE-2024-43407 has a CVSS score of 6.1 (Medium). The vector is network-reachable, no 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 (4.25.0); 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.
Remediation advice
The GeSHi library is no longer actively maintained. Due to the lack of ongoing support and updates, potential security vulnerabilities have been identified with its continued use. To mitigate these risks and enhance the overall security of the CKEditor 4, we have decided to completely remove the GeSHi library as a dependency. This change aims to maintain a secure environment and reduce the risk of any security incidents related to outdated or unsupported software.
To integrators who still want to use the GeSHi syntax highlighter, we recommend manually adding the GeSHi library . Please be aware of and understand the potential security vulnerabilities associated with its use.
The fix is be available in version 4.25.0-lts.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2024-43407? CVE-2024-43407 is a medium-severity cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in ckeditor4 (npm), affecting versions < 4.25.0. It is fixed in 4.25.0. Untrusted input is rendered as active markup in a victim's browser, which can run script in their session.
- How severe is CVE-2024-43407? CVE-2024-43407 has a CVSS score of 6.1 (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.
- Which packages are affected by CVE-2024-43407?
ckeditor4(npm) (versions < 4.25.0)ckeditor/ckeditor(composer) (versions < 4.25.0)
- Is there a fix for CVE-2024-43407? Yes. CVE-2024-43407 is fixed in 4.25.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2024-43407 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2024-43407 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-2024-43407 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-2024-43407?
- Upgrade
ckeditor4to 4.25.0 or later - Upgrade
ckeditor/ckeditorto 4.25.0 or later
- Upgrade