CVE-2023-42452
6.1 · MEDIUMOverview
CVE-2023-42452 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting joinmastodon mastodon. It was published on September 19, 2023 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 6.1 (MEDIUM).
This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 6.1, rated MEDIUM. It can be exploited remotely over the network. No authentication or special privileges are required for exploitation.
Technical Description
Mastodon is a free, open-source social network server based on ActivityPub. In versions on the 4.x branch prior to versions 4.0.10, 4.2.8, and 4.2.0-rc2, under certain conditions, attackers can abuse the translation feature to bypass the server-side HTML sanitization, allowing unescaped HTML to execute in the browser. The impact is limited thanks to Mastodon's strict Content Security Policy, blocking inline scripts, etc. However a CSP bypass or loophole could be exploited to execute malicious XSS. Furthermore, it requires user interaction, as this can only occur upon clicking the “Translate” button on a malicious post. Versions 4.0.10, 4.2.8, and 4.2.0-rc2 contain a patch for this issue.
Remediation
Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from joinmastodon. Update mastodon 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| joinmastodon | mastodon | >= 4.0.0, < 4.0.10 | Affected |
References
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CVE-2023-42452?
CVE-2023-42452 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting joinmastodon mastodon. It was published on September 19, 2023 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 6.1 (MEDIUM).
How severe is CVE-2023-42452?
This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 6.1, rated MEDIUM. It can be exploited remotely over the network. No authentication or special privileges are required for exploitation.
How do I fix or remediate CVE-2023-42452?
Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from joinmastodon. Update mastodon 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-2023-42452?
CyberStrike's AI-powered security agents can automatically detect CVE-2023-42452 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.
Automated penetration testing that runs continuously, not just quarterly.
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Browser-based exploitation validates findings with real proof-of-concept.
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