CVE-2023-28440 : What You Need to Know

A denial of service vulnerability via the admin theme import route in Discourse has been identified and assigned the CVE-2023-28440. This vulnerability has a low severity level with a CVSS base score of 2.7. It can lead to uncontrolled resource consumption and affect systems running certain versions of Discourse.

Understanding CVE-2023-28440

Discourse, an open-source platform for community discussion, is impacted by a vulnerability that allows a maliciously crafted request from a Discourse administrator to trigger a long-running request leading to eventual timeout. This vulnerability poses the highest risk in shared hosting environments where administrators are untrusted.

What is CVE-2023-28440?

The CVE-2023-28440 vulnerability in Discourse can potentially result in a denial of service condition due to uncontrolled resource consumption, triggered by a specially crafted request from an administrator. The impact is most significant in shared hosting environments where administrators may not be trusted.

The Impact of CVE-2023-28440

The main impact of CVE-2023-28440 is the potential for an attacker to exploit a vulnerability in Discourse by sending a malicious request. This can lead to a long-running request and eventual timeout, causing a denial of service. The most vulnerable environments are shared hosting setups where administrators have limited trust.

Technical Details of CVE-2023-28440

Discourse versions prior to 3.0.3 and 3.1.0.beta4 are affected by this vulnerability. The exploit has a low attack complexity and requires high privileges, with a base score of 2.7 in terms of severity.

Vulnerability Description

The vulnerability in Discourse allows an attacker to exploit the admin theme import route to trigger uncontrolled resource consumption, leading to denial of service.

Affected Systems and Versions

The affected versions of Discourse include:

stable: <= 3.0.2 and beta: <= 3.1.0.beta3

Exploitation Mechanism

The exploit involves sending a maliciously crafted request from a Discourse administrator, which can result in a long-running request that causes a denial of service by consuming excessive resources.

Mitigation and Prevention

To mitigate the CVE-2023-28440 vulnerability in Discourse, immediate steps should be taken to secure systems and prevent potential exploitation.

Immediate Steps to Take

Users are strongly advised to upgrade their Discourse installations to versions 3.0.3 or 3.1.0.beta4 to address the vulnerability and prevent potential denial of service attacks. It is recommended to apply patches and updates promptly.

Long-Term Security Practices

Implementing proper access controls, maintaining up-to-date software versions, and restricting administrator privileges can help reduce the risk of similar vulnerabilities being exploited in the future.

Patching and Updates

Regularly checking for security updates and applying patches promptly is crucial to ensure systems are protected against known vulnerabilities. Stay informed about security advisories and take necessary actions to secure your Discourse environment.