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Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference

CVE-2018-20843

High
7.5/10

Summary

In libexpat in Expat V19981122 before 2.2.7, XML input including XML names that contain a large number of colons could make the XML parser consume a high amount of RAM and CPU resources while processing (enough to be usable for denial-of-service attacks).

  • LOW
  • NETWORK
  • NONE
  • UNCHANGED
  • NONE
  • NONE
  • NONE
  • HIGH

CWE-611 - Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference

Listed 4th in the 'OWASP Top Ten', XML External Entities (XXE) vulnerability allows attackers to provide an XML input that contains an external entity. When the XML is parsed, it can cause data extraction and manipulation, execution of commands, denial-of-service attacks, and server-side request forgery.

References

Advisory Timeline

  • Published