GHSA-cr5q-6q9f-rq6q
MEDIUMActive Support Possibly Discloses Locally Encrypted Files
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
activesupport💎activesupportReal-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
There is a possible file disclosure of locally encrypted files in Active Support. This vulnerability has been assigned the CVE identifier CVE-2023-38037.
Versions Affected: >= 5.2.0 Not affected: < 5.2.0 Fixed Versions: 7.0.7.1, 6.1.7.5
Impact
ActiveSupport::EncryptedFile writes contents that will be encrypted to a temporary file. The temporary file’s permissions are defaulted to the user’s current umask settings, meaning that it’s possible for other users on the same system to read the contents of the temporary file.
Attackers that have access to the file system could possibly read the contents of this temporary file while a user is editing it.
All users running an affected release should either upgrade or use one of the workarounds immediately.
Releases
The fixed releases are available at the normal locations.
Workarounds
To work around this issue, you can set your umask to be more restrictive like this:
$ umask 0077
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 💎RubyGems | activesupport | ≥ 5.2.0&&< 6.1.7.5 | 6.1.7.5 |
| 💎RubyGems | activesupport | ≥ 7.0.0&&< 7.0.7.1 | 7.0.7.1 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for activesupport. 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 activesupport to 6.1.7.5 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-cr5q-6q9f-rq6q 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 GHSA-cr5q-6q9f-rq6q 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 GHSA-cr5q-6q9f-rq6q. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-cr5q-6q9f-rq6q in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-cr5q-6q9f-rq6q across RubyGems dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.