Performance Degradation in Django Package: CVE-2019-14233 Vulnerability
Summary
UBUNTU-CVE-2019-14233: An issue was discovered in Django 1.11.x before 1.11.23, 2.1.x before 2.1.11, and 2.2.x before 2.2.4. Affects python-django versions 1.5.4-1ubuntu1 – 1.6.11-0ubuntu1.3+esm7. No fix is published. How to fix ↓
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Background
Django is a high-level Python web framework that encourages rapid development and clean, pragmatic design. It provides a robust set of features for building web applications, including an ORM, URL routing, and templating. The vulnerability in question affects multiple versions of the Django package, specifically versions 1.11.x before 1.11.23, 2.1.x before 2.1.11, and 2.2.x before 2.2.4, leading to performance issues when processing certain HTML inputs.
Vulnerability Detail
An issue was discovered in Django versions 1.11.x before 1.11.23, 2.1.x before 2.1.11, and 2.2.x before 2.2.4. The vulnerability arises from the behavior of the underlying HTMLParser, which causes the function django.utils.html.strip_tags to evaluate certain inputs containing large sequences of nested incomplete HTML entities extremely slowly. This can lead to significant performance degradation in applications that rely on this functionality, potentially resulting in denial of service if exploited.
How To Fix
No fixed version is published for this vulnerability.
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Workaround
If an immediate update is not possible, consider implementing input validation to limit the complexity of HTML entities processed by your application. This can help mitigate the performance impact until the package is updated.
Conclusion
CVE-2019-14233 presents a significant performance issue in certain versions of the Django package, necessitating prompt action to update to patched versions. Users are encouraged to validate their inputs and monitor their applications for vulnerabilities using tools like Vulert.
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FAQ
CVE-2019-14233 is a vulnerability in Django that causes performance degradation when processing certain HTML inputs due to the behavior of the HTMLParser.
The affected versions include Django 1.11.x before 1.11.23, 2.1.x before 2.1.11, and 2.2.x before 2.2.4.
The vulnerability can lead to significant performance issues, potentially resulting in denial of service if exploited in applications that rely on the affected functionality.
You can use Vulert, which monitors and alerts for open-source vulnerabilities in your software. You can check your application against this vulnerability using the Vulert playground without any signup.
The CVSS score for CVE-2019-14233 is 7.5, indicating a high severity level.
References
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