CVE-2018-3740 : What You Need to Know

The Sanitize gem for Ruby is susceptible to a Cross-site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability due to improper neutralization of input during web page generation.

Understanding CVE-2018-3740

The CVE-2018-3740 vulnerability in the Sanitize gem for Ruby allows the injection of non-whitelisted attributes into whitelisted HTML elements.

What is CVE-2018-3740?

This CVE identifies a security flaw in the Sanitize gem for Ruby that enables the manipulation of HTML fragments to introduce non-whitelisted attributes into previously whitelisted HTML elements.

The Impact of CVE-2018-3740

The vulnerability can be exploited by attackers to execute malicious scripts, steal sensitive data, or perform unauthorized actions on affected systems.

Technical Details of CVE-2018-3740

The technical aspects of the CVE-2018-3740 vulnerability are as follows:

Vulnerability Description

A specially crafted HTML fragment can lead to the Sanitize gem for Ruby allowing non-whitelisted attributes on whitelisted HTML elements.

Affected Systems and Versions

Product: Sanitize (Ruby gem)
Vendor: Ryan Grove
Versions Affected: < 4.6.3

Exploitation Mechanism

The vulnerability can be exploited by crafting HTML fragments with malicious attributes to bypass the whitelisting mechanism and execute unauthorized scripts.

Mitigation and Prevention

To address CVE-2018-3740, consider the following mitigation strategies:

Immediate Steps to Take

Upgrade to version 4.6.3 or higher of the Sanitize gem to mitigate the vulnerability.
Implement input validation and output encoding to prevent XSS attacks.

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly update and patch all software components to address known vulnerabilities.
Conduct security audits and code reviews to identify and remediate potential security weaknesses.

Patching and Updates

Stay informed about security advisories and updates from the Sanitize gem vendor and relevant security sources to apply patches promptly.