CVE-2019-14232 : Vulnerability Insights and Analysis

A vulnerability in Django versions 1.11.x before 1.11.23, 2.1.x before 2.1.11, and 2.2.x before 2.2.4 could lead to significant performance issues due to a critical backtracking vulnerability in a regular expression.

Understanding CVE-2019-14232

This CVE identifies a specific vulnerability in Django versions that could impact performance and security.

What is CVE-2019-14232?

The vulnerability arises when using the html=True argument with certain functions in django.utils.text.Truncator, leading to performance issues due to a critical backtracking vulnerability in a regular expression. This affects the truncatechars_html and truncatewords_html template filters.

The Impact of CVE-2019-14232

The vulnerability could be exploited to cause performance degradation and potentially impact the security of Django applications.

Technical Details of CVE-2019-14232

This section provides more technical insights into the vulnerability.

Vulnerability Description

The issue occurs in Django versions prior to specific releases, impacting the chars() and words() functions in django.utils.text.Truncator.

Affected Systems and Versions

Vendor: n/a
Product: n/a
Versions: Django 1.11.x before 1.11.23, 2.1.x before 2.1.11, and 2.2.x before 2.2.4

Exploitation Mechanism

The vulnerability can be exploited by using the html=True argument with chars() and words() functions, leading to performance issues.

Mitigation and Prevention

Steps to address and prevent the CVE-2019-14232 vulnerability.

Immediate Steps to Take

Update Django to versions 1.11.23, 2.1.11, or 2.2.4 to mitigate the vulnerability.
Review and modify code that uses the affected functions to avoid performance issues.

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly update Django and other dependencies to stay protected against known vulnerabilities.
Conduct regular security audits and code reviews to identify and address potential issues.

Patching and Updates

Apply security patches provided by Django promptly to address vulnerabilities and enhance security.