GHSA-q3qx-c6g2-7pw2 is a high-severity (CVSS 7.2) vulnerability in aiohttp. 2 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for aiohttp — see the affected versions and patch details below.
aiohttp's ClientSession is vulnerable to CRLF injection via version
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 GHSA-q3qx-c6g2-7pw2.
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
GHSA-q3qx-c6g2-7pw2 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 379,145 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
aiohttpReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects PyPI packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Summary
Improper validation make it possible for an attacker to modify the HTTP request (e.g. to insert a new header) or even create a new HTTP request if the attacker controls the HTTP version.
Details
The vulnerability only occurs if the attacker can control the HTTP version of the request (including its type).
For example if an unvalidated JSON value is used as a version and the attacker is then able to pass an array as the version parameter.
Furthermore, the vulnerability only occurs when the Connection header is passed to the headers parameter.
At this point, the library will use the parsed value to create the request. If a list is passed, then it bypasses validation and it is possible to perform CRLF injection.
PoC
The POC below shows an example of providing an unvalidated array as a version: https://gist.github.com/jnovikov/184afb593d9c2114d77f508e0ccd508e
Impact
CRLF injection leading to Request Smuggling.
Workaround
If these specific conditions are met and you are unable to upgrade, then validate the user input to the version parameter to ensure it is a str.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐍PyPI | aiohttp | all versions | 3.9.0pip install --upgrade 'aiohttp==3.9.0' |
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 aiohttp, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update aiohttp to 3.9.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-q3qx-c6g2-7pw2 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 GHSA-q3qx-c6g2-7pw2 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to GHSA-q3qx-c6g2-7pw2. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Fixing This On Your OS
If you run this on a Linux distribution, patch through your package manager against the distro's own security advisory below — it tracks the exact backported fix for your release, which can ship on a different timeline (and sometimes a different severity) than the upstream project.
| Product | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform 2.4 for RHEL 8 | python3x-aiohttp-0:3.9.1-1.el8ap | RHSA-2024:1057 |
| Red Hat Satellite 6.14 for RHEL 8 | python-aiohttp-0:3.9.2-0.1.el8pc | RHSA-2024:1536 |
| Red Hat Satellite 6.15 for RHEL 8 | python-aiohttp-0:3.9.2-1.el8pc | RHSA-2024:2010 |
| RHUI 4 for RHEL 8 | python-aiohttp-0:3.9.2-1.el8ui | RHSA-2024:1878 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-q3qx-c6g2-7pw2 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds GHSA-q3qx-c6g2-7pw2 across PyPI dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.