CVE-2023-36814: zopefoundation's Products.CMFCore vulnerable to unauthenticated denial of service and crash via unchecked use of input with Python's marshal module

Published Jul 3, 2023
·
Updated

Impact The use of Python's marshal module to handle unchecked input in a public method on PortalFolder objects can lead to an unauthenticated denial of service and crash situation. The code in question is exposed by all portal software built on top of Products.CMFCore, such as Plone. All deployments are vulnerable.

Patches The code has been fixed in Products.CMFCore version 3.2.

Workarounds Users can make the affected decodeFolderFilter method unreachable by editing the PortalFolder.py module in Products.CMFCore by hand and then restarting Zope. Go to line 233 of PortalFolder.py and remove both the @security.public decorator for decodeFolderFilter as well as the method's entire docstring. This is safe because the method is not actually used by current code.

References - Products.CMFCore security advisory GHSA-4hpj-8rhv-9x87

Credits Thanks go to Nicolas VERDIER from onepoint.

For more information

If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:

- Open an issue in the Products.CMFCore issue tracker - Email us at security@plone.org

Other sources

Products.CMFCore are the key framework services for the Zope Content Management Framework (CMF). The use of Python's marshal module to handle unchecked input in a public method on PortalFolder objects can lead to an unauthenticated denial of service and crash situation. The code in question is exposed by all portal software built on top of Products.CMFCore, such as Plone. All deployments are vulnerable. The code has been fixed in Products.CMFCore version 3.2.

Affected Software

3 affected componentsFixes available
pip/Products.CMFCore>=3.0<3.2
3.2
pip/Products.CMFCore<2.7.1
2.7.1
Zope Products.CMFCore<3.2

Remediation

Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.

  1. Upgrade

    Upgrade pip/Products.CMFCore to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 3.2
  2. Upgrade

    Upgrade pip/Products.CMFCore to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 2.7.1
  3. Upgrade

    Upgrade Products.CMFCore to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 3.2
  4. Configuration

    Go to line 233 of `PortalFolder.py` and remove both the `@security.public` decorator for `decodeFolderFilter` as well as the method's entire docstring.

    Products.CMFCore PortalFolder.py (method decodeFolderFilter) Remove @security.public decorator and delete entire method docstring = @security.public decorator removed; docstring removed
  5. Operational

    If you applied the manual edit to `PortalFolder.py` to make `decodeFolderFilter` unreachable, restart Zope so the change takes effect.

Event History

Jul 3, 2023
CVE Published
via MITRE·04:48 PM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·04:48 PM
DescriptionSeverityWeakness
Data Sourced
via NVD·05:15 PM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityWeaknessAffected Software
Jul 5, 2023
Advisory Published
via GitHub·10:42 PM
Free Weekly Intel

Don't miss critical vulnerabilities

Join thousands of security professionals who receive our weekly digest of trending CVEs, zero-days, and exploited vulnerabilities.

No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.

Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is the impact of CVE-2023-36814?

The vulnerability can lead to an unauthenticated denial of service and crash situation.

2

Which software is affected by CVE-2023-36814?

Products.CMFCore and all portal software built on top of it, such as Plone.

3

How can the vulnerability be exploited?

By using Python's marshal module to handle unchecked input in a public method on PortalFolder objects.

4

What is the severity of CVE-2023-36814?

The severity of the vulnerability is high with a severity value of 7.

5

Where can I find more information about CVE-2023-36814?

You can find more information about CVE-2023-36814 on the following references: [GitHub Commit](https://github.com/zopefoundation/Products.CMFCore/commit/40f03f43a60f28ca9485c8ef429efef729be54e5), [GitHub Security Advisories](https://github.com/zopefoundation/Products.CMFCore/security/advisories/GHSA-4hpj-8rhv-9x87), [NVD Vulnerability Detail](https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-36814).

Contact

SecAlerts Pty Ltd.
132 Wickham Terrace
Fortitude Valley,
QLD 4006, Australia
info@secalerts.co
By using SecAlerts services, you agree to our services end-user license agreement. This website is safeguarded by reCAPTCHA and governed by the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. All names, logos, and brands of products are owned by their respective owners, and any usage of these names, logos, and brands for identification purposes only does not imply endorsement. If you possess any content that requires removal, please get in touch with us.
© 2026 SecAlerts Pty Ltd.
ABN: 70 645 966 203, ACN: 645 966 203