CVE-2023-33196 is a medium-severity (CVSS 5.5) CWE-80 vulnerability in craftcms/cms. 1 public exploit or proof-of-concept reference is indexed, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for craftcms/cms — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Craft CMS stored XSS in review volume
Exploitation Status
Proof-of-concept exploit code exists
- CISA’s SSVC triage found public proof-of-concept exploit code for this CVE, though no confirmed active exploitation.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2023-33196.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
Where this sits among everything scored
Real-World Exposure
craftcms/cmsReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Packagist packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Summary
XSS can be triggered by review volumes
PoC
1. Access setting tab
2. Create new assets
3. In assets name inject payload: "<script>alert(1337)</script>
4. Click Utilities tab
5. Choose all volumes, or volume trigger xss
6. Click Update asset indexes.
7. Wait to assets update success.
8. Progress complete.
9. Click on review button will trigger XSS
Root cause
Function: index.php?p=admin/actions/asset-indexes/process-indexing-session&v=1680710595770 After loading completed, progess will load: "skippedEntries" and "missingEntries" These parameters is not yet filtered, I just tried "skippedEntries" but I think it will be work with "missingEntries"
My reponse:
{ "session": { "id": 10, "indexedVolumes": { "6": ""<script>alert(1337)</script>" }, "totalEntries": 2235, "processedEntries": 2235, "cacheRemoteImages": true, "listEmptyFolders": false, "isCli": false, "actionRequired": true, "dateCreated": "Apr 5, 2023, 9:03:16 AM", "skippedEntries": [ ""<script>alert(1337)</script>/assetpreviews/Image.php", ""<script>alert(1337)</script>/assetpreviews/Pdf.php" ], "missingEntries": { "folders": [], "files": [] }, "processIfRootEmpty": false }, "skipDialog": false }
Resolved in https://github.com/craftcms/cms/commit/053d7119697e480ff81c5723bb9a33eaa49e0fc7
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐘Packagist | craftcms/cms | ≥ 4.0.0-RC1&&< 4.4.7 | 4.4.7composer require craftcms/cms:^4.4.7 |
Affected Products
craft cmscraftcmsResearch 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 craftcms/cms, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update craftcms/cms to 4.4.7 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2023-33196 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Escape or sanitise the affected output on the server side rather than relying on client-side filtering, and add a Content-Security-Policy that blocks inline script execution so injected markup cannot run even if it reaches the page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2023-33196 in your dependencies?
Find it across Packagist, including transitive dependencies.