CVE-2023-31133
Published: 08 May 2023
Summary
CVE-2023-31133 is a high-severity Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor (CWE-200) vulnerability in Ghost Ghost. Its CVSS base score is 7.5 (High).
Operationally, ranked in the top 8.2% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
Deeper analysis
Ghost is a content management platform for publishing websites, newsletters, and subscriptions. CVE-2023-31133 is an information disclosure vulnerability affecting Ghost versions prior to 5.46.1, caused by insufficient input validation on filter parameters accepted by public API endpoints. The flaw resides in the content API handling and allows exposure of private fields that should not be accessible to unauthenticated callers.
An unauthenticated attacker can send crafted requests containing filter expressions to the public API and use brute-force techniques to enumerate or reveal sensitive values such as password hashes or email addresses. The attack requires no credentials and targets the confidentiality of member or user data stored by the application.
The official Ghost security advisory and release notes for v5.46.1 recommend upgrading immediately; Ghost(Pro) instances were patched prior to public disclosure. Self-hosted deployments can apply the workaround of blocking requests to /ghost/api/content/* that include the strings “password” or “email” inside the filter query parameter. The referenced GitHub commits implement stricter validation of filter inputs on the affected endpoints.
EPSS for the CVE rose from a low baseline to a peak of 0.1832 before receding to the current value of 0.0717, indicating measurable post-disclosure exploitation interest. Maintainers have reported no observed exploitation against Ghost(Pro) prior to patching.
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2023-1619
Vulnerability details
Ghost is an app for new-media creators with tools to build a website, publish content, send newsletters, and offer paid subscriptions to members. Prior to version 5.46.1, due to a lack of validation when filtering on the public API endpoints,…
more
it is possible to reveal private fields via a brute force attack. Ghost(Pro) has already been patched. Maintainers can find no evidence that the issue was exploited on Ghost(Pro) prior to the patch being added. Self-hosters are impacted if running Ghost a version below v5.46.1. v5.46.1 contains a fix for this issue. As a workaround, add a block for requests to `/ghost/api/content/*` where the `filter` query parameter contains `password` or `email`.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
No named actor attribution yet. ATT&CK technique mapping in progress for this CVE.
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Likely Mitigating Controls AI
Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.
Automated marking applies security attributes to system outputs, making it harder for attackers to exploit unmarked sensitive information leading to unauthorized exposure.
Proper attribute retention and permitted-value enforcement limits unauthorized actors from accessing sensitive information lacking correct labels.
Prevents unauthorized exposure of sensitive information by prohibiting untrusted external systems from processing or storing it.
By enforcing authorization matching prior to sharing, the control reduces the risk of exposing sensitive information to unauthorized actors.
Review and removal of nonpublic information from publicly accessible systems directly prevents exposure of sensitive data to unauthorized actors.
Data mining protection mechanisms detect and block unauthorized bulk extraction of sensitive data, directly mitigating exposure to unauthorized actors.
Literacy training teaches users to recognize and avoid actions that result in unauthorized exposure of sensitive information.
Retaining and monitoring training records confirms personnel have completed privacy and security awareness training on handling sensitive data, reducing the chance of unauthorized exposure due to lack of knowledge.