CVE-2021-23341 is a high-severity vulnerability found in the prismjs package, specifically in versions prior to 1.23.0. This vulnerability allows Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS) attacks through the prism-asciidoc, prism-rest, prism-tap, and prism-eiffel components. The CVSS score for this vulnerability is 7.5, categorizing it as high severity, which indicates that it poses a significant risk to applications using affected versions.
Risk to organizations includes potential service outages due to ReDoS attacks. As this vulnerability is associated with high availability impact, attackers can exploit it to disrupt service, leading to downtimes and degraded user experience. Given its nature, organizations using prismjs should act swiftly to ensure their applications are not susceptible to such attacks.
Currently, there are no known public exploits or proof of concept (PoC) available for CVE-2021-23341. However, due to its classification and the potential for exploitation in real-world scenarios, organizations should prioritize patching immediately.
To mitigate the risks associated with this vulnerability, organizations should update to prismjs version 1.23.0 or later. Additionally, incorporating security best practices into the development lifecycle will help safeguard against similar vulnerabilities in the future.
In summary, CVE-2021-23341 represents a high-severity risk due to its potential for causing significant service disruptions. Organizations utilizing this library must take immediate action to apply the necessary updates and continuously monitor their security posture.
Vulnerability Details
The package prismjs before version 1.23.0 is vulnerable to Regular Expression Denial of Service (ReDoS) via several components. The official CVE description indicates that the vulnerability stems from the usage of vulnerable regex patterns that can be exploited under certain conditions.
The CVSS score of 7.5 falls within the high severity range, highlighting the critical nature of this vulnerability. It affects the prismjs vendor, specifically the prism component. The vulnerability was published on February 18, 2021, and has since been modified with updated details about its impact and remediation.
Technical Analysis
The root cause of CVE-2021-23341 lies in the improper handling of regular expressions within the affected components. The attack vector is network-based, allowing remote attackers to exploit the vulnerability without requiring any authentication or user interaction.
The attack complexity is classified as low, meaning that a successful attack can be executed with minimal effort. There are no privileges required to exploit this vulnerability, leading to a situation where any attacker can leverage it to cause disruptions.
When exploited, the impact on availability is high, effectively causing the application to become unresponsive or crash due to excessive resource consumption. This vulnerability does not impact confidentiality or integrity, as it does not expose sensitive data or allow unauthorized modifications.
Risk & Impact Analysis
Organizations using the prismjs library should be acutely aware of the risks posed by this vulnerability. The potential for ReDoS attacks means that an attacker could exploit this flaw to render applications unavailable, affecting business operations and customer satisfaction.
The blast radius of this vulnerability can be significant, particularly for web applications relying heavily on the prismjs library. If exploited, it could lead to widespread outages, disrupting services for all users and affecting the organization's reputation.
Given the CVSS score of 7.5, organizations should address this vulnerability in their priority patch cycle. The urgency for remediation is heightened due to the vulnerability's potential impact on availability, which can translate into financial losses and diminished trust from users.
Exploitation Status
Signal | Status |
|---|---|
Known Exploit | No |
Public PoC | No |
Actively Exploited | No |
Ransomware Use | No |
Affected Versions
The vulnerability affects all versions of the prismjs package prior to 1.23.0. Organizations that have not yet upgraded to this version should take immediate action to mitigate the risk.
Mitigation & Remediation
Organizations should prioritize updating the prismjs package to version 1.23.0 or later to remediate this vulnerability. If an upgrade is not possible, consider implementing application-level measures to limit input that might trigger the vulnerable regex patterns.
Monitoring systems for unusual behavior and implementing rate limiting can also help mitigate the risk associated with this vulnerability. For comprehensive security, organizations are encouraged to engage in penetration testing to identify potential weaknesses.
Detection Guidance
To detect potential exploitation of this vulnerability, organizations should monitor logs for patterns indicative of ReDoS attacks. Behavioral anomalies such as sudden spikes in CPU usage or application unresponsiveness should be investigated.
Network signatures that correspond to known exploit attempts can also serve as valuable indicators. Regular audits and application performance monitoring are critical for early detection of potential exploitation.
AppSecure Threat Intelligence Insight
CVE-2021-23341 highlights the ongoing challenge of maintaining secure coding practices, particularly with respect to regular expressions. As vulnerabilities like this can lead to significant service disruptions, it is essential for security teams to regularly review and update libraries in use.
The pattern of vulnerabilities arising from improper regex handling is a trend that security practitioners must be cognizant of. Continuous education and awareness can help mitigate risks associated with such vulnerabilities.
Organizations should adopt a proactive stance in vulnerability management, ensuring that they have a robust vulnerability management program in place to address potential weaknesses before they can be exploited.
For organizations using prismjs, the urgency to patch this vulnerability cannot be overstated. The potential impact on service availability necessitates immediate attention and remediation.
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
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