CVE-2023-31541
Published: 13 June 2023
Summary
CVE-2023-31541 is a critical-severity Unrestricted Upload of File with Dangerous Type (CWE-434) vulnerability in Ckeditor Ckeditor. Its CVSS base score is 9.8 (Critical).
Operationally, ranked in the top 9.6% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.
Deeper analysis
A unrestricted file upload vulnerability exists in the CKEditor v1.2.3 plugin for Redmine. The flaw, tracked as CVE-2023-31541 and assigned CWE-434, resides in the plugin’s “Browse and upload images” feature and permits arbitrary files to be written to the server. It carries a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.8 reflecting network-accessible exploitation without authentication or user interaction.
An unauthenticated remote attacker can send crafted upload requests directly to the affected feature and place malicious files on the Redmine server, resulting in full compromise of confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The EPSS score has remained flat at 0.0551 since disclosure, indicating no material increase in observed exploitation interest. No advisory or patch details are provided in the available references.
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2023-35844
Vulnerability details
A unrestricted file upload vulnerability was discovered in the ‘Browse and upload images’ feature of the CKEditor v1.2.3 plugin for Redmine, which allows arbitrary files to be uploaded to the server.
- 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.
Requiring identifiable owners for portable devices reduces the attack surface for unrestricted uploads of dangerous file types via anonymous media.
Dangerous file uploads can be detonated in the chamber to determine malice before any production write or execution occurs.
Prevents unrestricted writing of arbitrary or malicious firmware by keeping hardware write-protect enabled except under tightly controlled manual procedures.
Scans files from external sources on download/open/execute, blocking unrestricted uploads of dangerous file types.