XML External Entity (XXE) Injection Affecting expat package, versions <2.4.1-2


low

Snyk CVSS

    Attack Complexity Low
    User Interaction Required

    Threat Intelligence

    EPSS 0.52% (77th percentile)
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NVD
6.3 medium
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Red Hat
4.3 medium

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  • Snyk ID SNYK-DEBIANUNSTABLE-EXPAT-358080
  • published 21 Jan 2014
  • disclosed 21 Jan 2014

How to fix?

Upgrade Debian:unstable expat to version 2.4.1-2 or higher.

NVD Description

Note: Versions mentioned in the description apply only to the upstream expat package and not the expat package as distributed by Debian. See How to fix? for Debian:unstable relevant fixed versions and status.

expat 2.1.0 and earlier does not properly handle entities expansion unless an application developer uses the XML_SetEntityDeclHandler function, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (resource consumption), send HTTP requests to intranet servers, or read arbitrary files via a crafted XML document, aka an XML External Entity (XXE) issue. NOTE: it could be argued that because expat already provides the ability to disable external entity expansion, the responsibility for resolving this issue lies with application developers; according to this argument, this entry should be REJECTed, and each affected application would need its own CVE.