CVE-2023-46136 Explained : Impact and Mitigation

Werkzeug vulnerability in processing multipart/form-data with large parts containing CR/LF character at the beginning leads to high resource usage.

Understanding CVE-2023-46136

This CVE identifies a vulnerability in Werkzeug, a WSGI web application library, affecting versions lower than 3.0.1.

What is CVE-2023-46136?

The flaw allows an attacker to execute a denial-of-service attack by sending specially crafted multipart data, causing excessive CPU usage and potentially blocking legitimate requests.

The Impact of CVE-2023-46136

The vulnerability can lead to significant resource exhaustion, hindering the normal operation of affected systems and potentially disrupting services.

Technical Details of CVE-2023-46136

The vulnerability arises when uploading a file with CR/LF characters at the beginning, followed by a large amount of data without these characters. This triggers high resource consumption when parsing the multipart data.

Vulnerability Description

Attackers can exploit this issue to exhaust system resources, leading to service interruptions and degraded performance.

Affected Systems and Versions

Werkzeug versions prior to 3.0.1 are susceptible to this vulnerability, exposing systems to potential denial-of-service attacks.

Exploitation Mechanism

By sending specially crafted multipart data, an attacker can overwhelm the parsing mechanism, causing high CPU usage and impacting system availability.

Mitigation and Prevention

To address CVE-2023-46136, immediate action is required to safeguard systems and prevent exploitation.

Immediate Steps to Take

Update Werkzeug to version 3.0.1 or later to apply the necessary patches and mitigate the vulnerability.
Monitor system resources for unusual spikes in CPU usage that could indicate exploitation attempts.

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly apply security updates and patches to mitigate known vulnerabilities in software libraries and frameworks.
Implement strict input validation mechanisms to prevent malicious data uploads and buffer overflow attacks.

Patching and Updates

Ensure timely installation of security patches and updates to fortify systems against evolving threats and vulnerabilities.