CVE-2023-25813
📋 TL;DR
CVE-2023-25813 is a critical SQL injection vulnerability in Sequelize ORM for Node.js where user-provided parameters passed through replacements are not properly escaped. This allows attackers to execute arbitrary SQL commands on databases. All applications using Sequelize versions before 6.19.1 with the vulnerable replacement feature are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- Sequelize ORM
📦 What is this software?
Sequelize by Sequelizejs
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete database compromise including data theft, data destruction, privilege escalation, and potential remote code execution through database functions.
Likely Case
Data exfiltration, data manipulation, authentication bypass, and potential lateral movement within the database environment.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper input validation, parameterized queries, and database user privilege restrictions.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user input to reach vulnerable query construction. Public proof-of-concept exists in GitHub issues.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 6.19.1
Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/sequelize/sequelize/security/advisories/GHSA-wrh9-cjv3-2hpw
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Update package.json to specify sequelize version 6.19.1 or higher. 2. Run npm update sequelize or yarn upgrade sequelize. 3. Restart your Node.js application.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Avoid replacements with where clauses
allDo not use replacements parameter together with where option in Sequelize queries
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict input validation and sanitization for all user inputs
- Use parameterized queries instead of replacements feature
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check package.json or run npm list sequelize to verify version is below 6.19.1Check Version:
npm list sequelize | grep sequelizeVerify Fix Applied:
Confirm sequelize version is 6.19.1 or higher via npm list sequelize📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual SQL query patterns
- Multiple failed login attempts with SQL-like syntax
- Database errors containing user input
Network Indicators:
- Unusual database connection patterns
- Large data transfers from database server
SIEM Query:
source="application.log" AND ("SQL syntax" OR "sequelize" OR "database error") AND (user_input OR replacements)🔗 References
- https://github.com/sequelize/sequelize/commit/ccaa3996047fe00048d5993ab2dd43ebadd4f78b
- https://github.com/sequelize/sequelize/issues/14519
- https://github.com/sequelize/sequelize/releases/tag/v6.19.1
- https://github.com/sequelize/sequelize/security/advisories/GHSA-wrh9-cjv3-2hpw
- https://github.com/sequelize/sequelize/commit/ccaa3996047fe00048d5993ab2dd43ebadd4f78b
- https://github.com/sequelize/sequelize/issues/14519
- https://github.com/sequelize/sequelize/releases/tag/v6.19.1
- https://github.com/sequelize/sequelize/security/advisories/GHSA-wrh9-cjv3-2hpw
