CVE-2020-26223 is a medium-severity (CVSS 6.5) CWE-863 vulnerability in spree_api. 1 public exploit reference exists, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for spree_api — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Authorization bypass in Spree
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.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2020-26223 plotted by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). The shaded corner — EPSS 50%+ and CVSS 7.0+ — is where this CVE doesn't sit, though severity or exploitability alone can still warrant action.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 377,333 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
spree_api💎spree_api💎spree_apiReal-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
Impact
The perpetrator could query the API v2 Order Status endpoint with an empty string passed as an Order token
Patches
Please upgrade to 3.7.11, 4.0.4, or 4.1.11 depending on your used Spree version. Users of Spree < 3.7 are not affected.
References
Pull request with a fix and in-depth explanation - https://github.com/spree/spree/pull/10573
For more information
If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:
- Email us at [email protected]
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 💎RubyGems | spree_api | ≥ 3.7.0&&< 3.7.13 | 3.7.13bundle update spree_api --conservative |
| 💎RubyGems | spree_api | ≥ 4.0.0&&< 4.0.5 | 4.0.5bundle update spree_api --conservative |
| 💎RubyGems | spree_api | ≥ 4.1.0&&< 4.1.12 | 4.1.12bundle update spree_api --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 spree_api, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update spree_api to 3.7.13 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2020-26223 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-2020-26223 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2020-26223. 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-2020-26223 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2020-26223 across RubyGems dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.