CVE-2023-37467 : Vulnerability Insights and Analysis

This article provides detailed information on CVE-2023-37467, a Discourse CSP nonce reuse vulnerability affecting anonymous users.

Understanding CVE-2023-37467

CVE-2023-37467 is a vulnerability in the Discourse open source discussion platform that allows for a CSP nonce reuse issue, potentially leading to cross-site scripting attacks for unauthenticated users.

What is CVE-2023-37467?

Prior to version 3.1.0.beta7 of the

beta

and

tests-passed

branches, Discourse was vulnerable to a CSP nonce reuse flaw that could enable XSS attacks to bypass CSP protection specifically for anonymous users. The vulnerability does not impact authenticated (logged-in) users.

The Impact of CVE-2023-37467

While there are no known XSS attack vectors currently, in the event of such a discovery, this vulnerability could facilitate successful execution of XSS attacks by bypassing CSP protection.

Technical Details of CVE-2023-37467

The following technical details outline the vulnerability, affected systems, and exploitation mechanisms.

Vulnerability Description

A CSP nonce reuse vulnerability in Discourse enables potential bypassing of CSP protection for anonymous users, which could lead to successful XSS attacks.

Affected Systems and Versions

Affected Product: Discourse
Affected Versions: >= 3.1.0.beta1, < 3.1.0.beta7

Exploitation Mechanism

This vulnerability allows for the bypassing of CSP protection, potentially enabling cross-site scripting attacks against anonymous users on the affected Discourse versions.

Mitigation and Prevention

To address CVE-2023-37467 and prevent security risks, consider the following mitigation strategies.

Immediate Steps to Take

Upgrade Discourse to version 3.1.0.beta7 or newer to apply the necessary patch that addresses the CSP nonce reuse vulnerability.

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly update Discourse to the latest stable versions to ensure the incorporation of necessary security patches and fixes.

Patching and Updates

Ensure that Google Tag Manager is disabled as a workaround to mitigate the vulnerability by unsetting the

gtm container id

setting.