GHSA-pqg8-crx9-g8m4
HIGHGHSA-pqg8-crx9-g8m4 is a high-severity (CVSS 8) CWE-346 vulnerability in typo3/cms-core. O3 Security confirms whether GHSA-pqg8-crx9-g8m4 is actually reachable in your code before you act, and blocks exploitation at runtime until you patch.
Backend Same-Site Request Forgery in TYPO3 CMS
Real-World Exposure
typo3/cms-core🐘typo3/cms-core🐘typo3/cms🐘typo3/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
Meta
- CVSS v3.1: AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:F/RL:O/RC:C
- CWE-352
- CWE-346
Problem
It has been discovered that backend user interface and install tool are vulnerable to same-origin request forgery. A backend user can be tricked into interacting with a malicious resource an attacker previously managed to upload to the web server - scripts are then executed with the privileges of the victims' user session.
In a worst case scenario new admin users can be created which can directly be used by an attacker. The vulnerability is basically a cross-site request forgery (CSRF) triggered by a cross-site scripting vulnerability (XSS) - but happens on the same target host - thus, it’s actually a same-origin request forgery.
Malicious payload such as HTML containing JavaScript might be provided by either an authenticated backend user or by a non-authenticated user using a 3rd party extension - e.g. file upload in a contact form with knowing the target location.
The attacked victim requires an active and valid backend or install tool user sessions at the time of the attack to be successful.
Solution
Update to TYPO3 versions 9.5.17 or 10.4.2 that mitigates the problem described.
Additional Considerations
The deployment of additional mitigation techniques is suggested as described below.
Sudo Mode Extension
This TYPO3 extension intercepts modifications to security relevant database tables, e.g. those storing user accounts or storages of the file abstraction layer. Modifications need to confirmed by again by the acting user with providing their password again - this technique is known as "sudo mode". This way unintended actions happening in the background can be mitigated.
Content Security Policy
Content Security Policies tell (modern) browsers how resources served a particular site are handled - it also it possible to disallow script executions for specific locations. In a TYPO3 context it is suggested to disallow direct script execution at least for locations /fileadmin/ and /uploads/.
# in fileadmin/.htaccess
<IfModule mod_headers.c>
Header add Content-Security-Policy "default-src 'self'; script-src 'none';"
</IfModule>
Credits
Thanks to Matteo Bonaker who reported this issue and to TYPO3 security team member Oliver Hader who fixed the issue.
References
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐘Packagist | typo3/cms-core | ≥ 9.0.0&&< 9.5.17 | 9.5.17 |
| 🐘Packagist | typo3/cms-core | ≥ 10.0.0&&< 10.4.2 | 10.4.2 |
| 🐘Packagist | typo3/cms | ≥ 10.0.0&&< 10.4.2 | 10.4.2 |
| 🐘Packagist | typo3/cms | ≥ 9.0.0&&< 9.5.17 | 9.5.17 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for typo3/cms-core. 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 typo3/cms-core to 9.5.17 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-pqg8-crx9-g8m4 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-pqg8-crx9-g8m4 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-pqg8-crx9-g8m4. 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-pqg8-crx9-g8m4 in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-pqg8-crx9-g8m4 across Packagist dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.