GHSA-q79m-c546-2g63
CakePHP vulnerable to Denial of Service attack through XML payloads
Blast Radius
cakephp/cakephp🐘cakephp/cakephp🐘cakephp/cakephp🐘cakephp/cakephp🐘cakephp/cakephp🐘cakephp/cakephp🐘cakephp/cakephp🐘cakephp/cakephpReal-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
RequestHandlerComponent had a vulnerability that would allow well crafted requests to create a denial of service attack. RequestHandlerComponent leverages Xml::build() which allows reading local files. We recommend that all applications using RequestHandlerComponent upgrade, or disable parsing XML payloads.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐘Packagist | cakephp/cakephp | ≥ 3.0.0&&< 3.0.6 | 3.0.6 |
| 🐘Packagist | cakephp/cakephp | ≥ 2.0.0&&< 2.0.99 | 2.0.99 |
| 🐘Packagist | cakephp/cakephp | ≥ 2.1.0&&< 2.1.99 | 2.1.99 |
| 🐘Packagist | cakephp/cakephp | ≥ 2.2.0&&< 2.2.99 | 2.2.99 |
| 🐘Packagist | cakephp/cakephp | ≥ 2.3.0&&< 2.3.99 | 2.3.99 |
| 🐘Packagist | cakephp/cakephp | ≥ 2.4.0&&< 2.4.99 | 2.4.99 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for cakephp/cakephp. 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 cakephp/cakephp to 3.0.6 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-q79m-c546-2g63 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-q79m-c546-2g63 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-q79m-c546-2g63. 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-q79m-c546-2g63 in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-q79m-c546-2g63 across Packagist dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.