CVE-2012-6497 — authlogic
CVE-2012-6497 is a SQL Injection vulnerability in authlogic. 2 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for authlogic — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Authlogic Information Exposure vulnerability
EPSS Exploitation Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.
Real-World Exposure
authlogicReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects RubyGems packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
The Authlogic gem for Ruby on Rails, when used with certain versions before 3.2.10, makes potentially unsafe find_by_id method calls, which might allow remote attackers to conduct CVE-2012-6496 SQL injection attacks via a crafted parameter in environments that have a known secret_token value, as demonstrated by a value contained in secret_token.rb in an open-source product.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 💎RubyGems | authlogic | all versions | 3.3.0bundle update authlogic --conservative |
Research use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for authlogic, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update authlogic to 3.3.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2012-6497 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How O3 protects you
O3 Security's impact-aware SCA analyses which vulnerable code paths your application actually calls, so a match like CVE-2012-6497 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2012-6497. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2012-6497 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2012-6497 across RubyGems dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.