What is GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC?

GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC is a low-severity improper input validation vulnerability in rand (rust), affecting versions = 0.10.0. It is fixed in 0.10.1, 0.9.3, 0.8.6. The application does not adequately validate input before processing it, allowing unexpected values to reach sensitive code paths.

Which versions of rand are affected by GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC?

rand (rust) versions = 0.10.0 is affected.

Is there a fix for GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC?

Yes. GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC is fixed in 0.10.1, 0.9.3, 0.8.6. Upgrade to this version or later.

Is GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC 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 GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC 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.

GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC in rand

Q: How do I fix GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC?

Upgrade: rand to 0.10.1 or later, rand to 0.9.3 or later, rand to 0.8.6 or later.

Summary

Rand is unsound with a custom logger using rand::rng()

It has been reported (by @lopopolo) that the rand library is unsound (i.e. that safe code using the public API can cause Undefined Behaviour) when all the following conditions are met:

The log and thread_rng features are enabled
A custom logger is defined
The custom logger accesses rand::rng() (previously rand::thread_rng()) and calls any TryRng (previously RngCore) methods on ThreadRng
The ThreadRng (attempts to) reseed while called from the custom logger (this happens every 64 kB of generated data)
Trace-level logging is enabled or warn-level logging is enabled and the random source (the getrandom crate) is unable to provide a new seed

TryRng (previously RngCore) methods for ThreadRng use unsafe code to cast *mut BlockRng<ReseedingCore> to &mut BlockRng<ReseedingCore>. When all the above conditions are met this results in an aliased mutable reference, violating the Stacked Borrows rules. Miri is able to detect this violation in sample code. Since construction of aliased mutable references is Undefined Behaviour, the behaviour of optimized builds is hard to predict.

Impact

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.

Affected versions

rand (= 0.10.0) rand (>= 0.9.0, < 0.9.3) rand (>= 0.7.0, < 0.8.6)

Security releases

rand → 0.10.1 (rust) rand → 0.9.3 (rust) rand → 0.8.6 (rust)

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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Remediation advice

Upgrade the following packages to resolve this vulnerability:

rand to 0.10.1 or later; rand to 0.9.3 or later; rand to 0.8.6 or later

Kodem Kai can prioritize this vulnerability in your dependency tree and generate a fix recommendation.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC? GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC is a low-severity improper input validation vulnerability in rand (rust), affecting versions = 0.10.0. It is fixed in 0.10.1, 0.9.3, 0.8.6. The application does not adequately validate input before processing it, allowing unexpected values to reach sensitive code paths.
Which versions of rand are affected by GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC? rand (rust) versions = 0.10.0 is affected.
Is there a fix for GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC? Yes. GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC is fixed in 0.10.1, 0.9.3, 0.8.6. Upgrade to this version or later.
Is GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC 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 GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC 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 GHSA-CQ8V-F236-94QC?
- Upgrade rand to 0.10.1 or later
- Upgrade rand to 0.9.3 or later
- Upgrade rand to 0.8.6 or later