CVE-2019-16764
6.5 · MEDIUMOverview
CVE-2019-16764 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting powauth powassent. It was published on November 25, 2019 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 6.5 (MEDIUM).
This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 6.5, rated MEDIUM. It can be exploited remotely over the network. Some level of privileges is required for exploitation.
Technical Description
The use of `String.to_atom/1` in PowAssent is susceptible to denial of service attacks. In `PowAssent.Phoenix.AuthorizationController` a value is fetched from the user provided params, and `String.to_atom/1` is used to convert the binary value to an atom so it can be used to fetch the provider configuration value. This is unsafe as it is user provided data, and can be used to fill up the whole atom table of ~1M which will cause the app to crash.
Remediation
Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from powauth. Update powassent to the latest patched version. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.
Affected Products
| Vendor | Product | Versions | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| powauth | powassent | >= 0, < 0.4.4 | Affected |
References
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CVE-2019-16764?
CVE-2019-16764 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting powauth powassent. It was published on November 25, 2019 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 6.5 (MEDIUM).
How severe is CVE-2019-16764?
This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 6.5, rated MEDIUM. It can be exploited remotely over the network. Some level of privileges is required for exploitation.
How do I fix or remediate CVE-2019-16764?
Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from powauth. Update powassent to the latest patched version. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.
How can CyberStrike help with CVE-2019-16764?
CyberStrike's AI-powered security agents can automatically detect CVE-2019-16764 across your infrastructure using autonomous pentesting, DAST scanning, and HackBrowser. The platform continuously monitors for known vulnerabilities and provides actionable remediation guidance prioritized by real-world exploitability.
How CyberStrike Helps
AI agents map your attack surface to find vulnerabilities like this one.
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