CVE-2014-4920 — twitter-bootstrap-rails
CVE-2014-4920 is a security vulnerability in twitter-bootstrap-rails. A fix is available for twitter-bootstrap-rails — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Reflective Cross-site Scripting Vulnerability in twitter-bootstrap-rails
Real-World Exposure
twitter-bootstrap-railsReal-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 twitter-bootstrap-rails Gem for Rails contains a flaw that enables a reflected cross-site scripting (XSS) attack. This flaw exists because the bootstrap_flash helper method does not validate input when handling flash messages before returning it to users. This may allow a context-dependent attacker to create a specially crafted request that would execute arbitrary script code in a user's browser session within the trust relationship between their browser and the server.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 💎RubyGems | twitter-bootstrap-rails | all versions | 3.2.0bundle update twitter-bootstrap-rails --conservative |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for twitter-bootstrap-rails, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update twitter-bootstrap-rails to 3.2.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2014-4920 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-2014-4920 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2014-4920. 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-2014-4920 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2014-4920 across RubyGems dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.