GHSA-vv2v-pw69-8crf is a medium-severity (CVSS 5.5) Improper Input Validation vulnerability in directus. A fix is available for directus — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Directus is Vulnerable to Stored Cross-site Scripting
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for GHSA-vv2v-pw69-8crf.
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-vv2v-pw69-8crf 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 378,567 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
How broadly this vulnerability is actually deployed: weekly install volume shows current usage, and reverse-dependency count shows how many other packages break if it stays unpatched.
directusnpmDescription
Summary
A stored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability exists that allows users with upload files and edit item permissions to inject malicious JavaScript through the Block Editor interface. Attackers can bypass Content Security Policy (CSP) restrictions by combining file uploads with iframe srcdoc attributes, resulting in persistent XSS execution.
Details
The vulnerability arises from insufficient sanitization in the Block Editor interface when processing JSON content containing HTML elements. The attack requires two permissions:
upload files- To upload malicious JavaScript filesedit item- To create or modify content with the Block Editor
Attack Vector:
-
JavaScript File Upload: Attackers upload a malicious JavaScript file via the files endpoint, obtaining a file ID accessible through the assets directory
-
Block Editor Exploitation: Using a JSON field with Block Editor interface, attackers inject raw HTML containing an iframe with srcdoc attribute that references the uploaded file
-
CSP Bypass: The iframe srcdoc technique circumvents existing CSP protections by creating a new document context that loads the uploaded script
The payload is injected through direct API manipulation (PATCH request) to bypass client-side validation, targeting the Block Editor's paragraph data structure within the JSON content field.
Impact
This vulnerability enables:
- Persistent XSS - Malicious scripts execute whenever affected content is viewed
- Session hijacking - Access to authentication tokens and cookies of users viewing the content
- Administrative compromise - If administrators view infected content, their elevated privileges can be exploited
- CSP bypass - Demonstrates ineffective security controls, potentially affecting other protections
- Data exfiltration - Ability to steal sensitive information displayed in the application
- Phishing attacks - Injection of convincing fake login forms or malicious redirects
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📦npm | directus | all versions | 11.13.0npm install directus@11.13.0 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for directus, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update directus to 11.13.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-vv2v-pw69-8crf 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-vv2v-pw69-8crf can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to GHSA-vv2v-pw69-8crf. 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-vv2v-pw69-8crf in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds GHSA-vv2v-pw69-8crf across npm dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.