CVE-2024-49756
MEDIUMAshPostgres empty, atomic, non-bulk actions, policy bypass for side-effects 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.
Blast Radius
ash_postgresReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Hex packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
AshPostgres is the PostgreSQL data layer for Ash Framework. Starting in version 2.0.0 and prior to version 2.4.10, in certain very specific situations, it was possible for the policies of an update action to be skipped. This occurred only on "empty" update actions (no changing fields), and would allow their hooks (side effects) to be performed when they should not have been. Note that this does not allow reading new data that the user should not have had access to, only triggering a side effect a user should not have been able to trigger.
To be vulnerable, an affected user must have an update action that is on a resource with no attributes containing an "update default" (updated_at timestamp, for example); can be performed atomically; does not have require_atomic? false; has at least one authorizer (typically Ash.Policy.Authorizer); and has at least one change (on the resource's changes block or in the action itself). This is where the side-effects would be performed when they should not have been.
This problem has been patched in 2.4.10 of ash_postgres. Several workarounds are available. Potentially affected users may determine that none of their actions are vulnerable using a script the maintainers provide in the GitHub Security Advisory, add require_atomic? false to any potentially affected update action, replace any usage of Ash.update with Ash.bulk_update for an affected action, and/or add an update timestamp to their action.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 💧Hex | ash_postgres | ≥ 2.0.0&&< 2.4.10 | 2.4.10 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for ash_postgres. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update ash_postgres to 2.4.10 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2024-49756 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 pinpoints whether CVE-2024-49756 is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to CVE-2024-49756. 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-2024-49756 in your dependencies?
O3 detects CVE-2024-49756 across Hex dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.