GHSA-q6j3-c4wc-63vw is a medium-severity (CVSS 4.3) vulnerability in datasette. A fix is available for datasette — see the affected versions and patch details below.
CSRF tokens leaked in URL by canned query form
Real-World Exposure
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Description
Impact
The HTML form for a read-only canned query includes the hidden CSRF token field added in #798 for writable canned queries (#698).
This means that submitting those read-only forms exposes the CSRF token in the URL - for example on https://latest.datasette.io/fixtures/neighborhood_search submitting the form took me to:
https://latest.datasette.io/fixtures/neighborhood_search?text=down&csrftoken=CSRFTOKEN-HERE
This token could potentially leak to an attacker if the resulting page has a link to an external site on it and the user clicks the link, since the token would be exposed in the referral logs.
Patches
A fix for this issue has been released in Datasette 0.46.
Workarounds
You can fix this issue in a Datasette instance without upgrading by copying the 0.46 query.html template into a custom templates/ directory and running Datasette with the --template-dir=templates/ option.
References
Issue 918 discusses this in details: https://github.com/simonw/datasette/issues/918
For more information
Contact swillison at gmail with any questions.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐍PyPI | datasette | all versions | 0.46pip install --upgrade 'datasette==0.46' |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for datasette, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update datasette to 0.46 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-q6j3-c4wc-63vw 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-q6j3-c4wc-63vw can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to GHSA-q6j3-c4wc-63vw. 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-q6j3-c4wc-63vw in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds GHSA-q6j3-c4wc-63vw across PyPI dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.