GHSA-xxx9-3xcr-gjj3
MEDIUMXML Injection in Xerces Java affects Nokogiri
Blast Radius
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Description
Summary
Nokogiri v1.13.4 updates the vendored xerces:xercesImpl from 2.12.0 to 2.12.2, which addresses CVE-2022-23437. That CVE is scored as CVSS 6.5 "Medium" on the NVD record.
Please note that this advisory only applies to the JRuby implementation of Nokogiri < 1.13.4.
Mitigation
Upgrade to Nokogiri >= v1.13.4.
Impact
CVE-2022-23437 in xerces-J
- Severity: Medium
- Type: CWE-91 XML Injection (aka Blind XPath Injection)
- Description: There's a vulnerability within the Apache Xerces Java (XercesJ) XML parser when handling specially crafted XML document payloads. This causes, the XercesJ XML parser to wait in an infinite loop, which may sometimes consume system resources for prolonged duration. This vulnerability is present within XercesJ version 2.12.1 and the previous versions.
- See also: https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-h65f-jvqw-m9fj
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 💎RubyGems | nokogiri | all versions | 1.13.4 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for nokogiri. 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 nokogiri to 1.13.4 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-xxx9-3xcr-gjj3 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-xxx9-3xcr-gjj3 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-xxx9-3xcr-gjj3. 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-xxx9-3xcr-gjj3 in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-xxx9-3xcr-gjj3 across RubyGems dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.