Is CVE-2021-42648 exploited in the wild?

No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2021-42648 being exploited in the wild.

How severe is CVE-2021-42648?

Low severity, with a CVSS score of 3.1, published 12 May 2022.

Which products and versions are affected?

code-server (npm) SEMVER:introduced=0,fixed=3.12.0.

Is there a fix for CVE-2021-42648?

Yes. code-server (npm): upgrade to 3.12.0 or later. Junglewise finds every place you run it, drafts the upgrade and applies it once you approve.

How is CVE-2021-42648 attacked?

It is attacked over the network, in a network appliance.

Am I affected by CVE-2021-42648?

Check whether you run code-server (npm) at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

CVE-2021-42648: Coder code-server XSS in error page

CVE-2021-42648 · Severity: low · CVSS 3.1 · Published 2022-05-12

code-server is a platform that allows developers to run VS Code in a web browser. A security vulnerability was identified where the application failed to properly clean error messages before displaying them to users. An attacker could use this to execute malicious scripts in a user's browser, potentially leading to unauthorized actions or the theft of sensitive session information.

Technologies: code-server (npm). Vendors: npm.

Quick answers

Is CVE-2021-42648 exploited in the wild?: No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2021-42648 being exploited in the wild.
How severe is CVE-2021-42648?: Low severity, with a CVSS score of 3.1, published 12 May 2022.
Which products and versions are affected?: code-server (npm) SEMVER:introduced=0,fixed=3.12.0.
Is there a fix for CVE-2021-42648?: Yes. code-server (npm): upgrade to 3.12.0 or later. Junglewise finds every place you run it, drafts the upgrade and applies it once you approve.
How is CVE-2021-42648 attacked?: It is attacked over the network, in a network appliance.
Am I affected by CVE-2021-42648?: Check whether you run code-server (npm) at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

How to fix

code-server (npm): upgrade to 3.12.0 or later
```
npm install code-server@3.12.0
```

Technical details

A reflected cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability exists in Coder code-server versions prior to 3.12.0. The root cause is the failure to escape HTML content within error messages before rendering them on the error page (specifically within 'src/node/routes/errors.ts'). An attacker can exploit this by tricking a user into clicking a specially crafted URL containing malicious scripts. If successful, the attacker can execute arbitrary JavaScript in the context of the user's session, which could lead to session hijacking or unauthorized data access. The issue was resolved in version 3.12.0 by implementing proper HTML escaping for error message strings.

Affected products

Coder code-server < 3.12.0

Identifiers

CVE-2021-42648
GHSA-2gp3-6c9p-jp7w

Timeline

2021-11-09: patched: Fix merged into main branch via PR 4430
2022-05-11: advisory: NVD published CVE-2021-42648
2022-05-12: disclosed: GitHub Advisory published

References

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