GHSA-vhvq-fv9f-wh4q — spicedb
Fix: authzed/spicedb#2878GHSA-vhvq-fv9f-wh4q is a security vulnerability in github.com/authzed/spicedb. A fix is available for github.com/authzed/spicedb — see the affected versions and patch details below.
LookupResources Cursor section tampering can crash SpiceDB process via tuple.MustParse panic
Real-World Exposure
github.com/authzed/spicedbReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Go packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Description
A malformed or tampered-with LookupResources Cursor token can cause a panic in the SpiceDB process if it fails to parse. If an attacker were able to make requests to a SpiceDB instance, they could affect its availability.
Reproduction
If one was to take a cursor from a LookupResources call, decode it according to the logic that SpiceDB uses, and modify the Sections field to include an invalid relationship string, the process will panic.
Impact
An attacker would need both the ability to create a gRPC connection to your SpiceDB instance and a valid token, or else the ability to pass a cursor token from outside your application through to your SpiceDB instance.
If an attacker had this ability, they could bring down SpiceDB instances, reducing the availability of SpiceDB and any service that depends on it.
Mechanism
The SpiceDB process does not validate the contents of this Sections component of the Cursor message. In affected versions, it uses a parsing function that calls panic if the value cannot be parsed as a relationship.
Fix
This issue was fixed in https://github.com/authzed/spicedb/pull/2878.
Remediations
- Prevent client control of the
optional_cursorfield inLookupResourcescalls - Upgrade to an unaffected version
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/authzed/spicedb | ≥ 1.29.3&&< 1.49.1 | 1.49.1go get github.com/authzed/spicedb@v1.49.1 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/authzed/spicedb, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/authzed/spicedb to 1.49.1 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-vhvq-fv9f-wh4q 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-vhvq-fv9f-wh4q can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to GHSA-vhvq-fv9f-wh4q. 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-vhvq-fv9f-wh4q in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds GHSA-vhvq-fv9f-wh4q across Go dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.