RailsApplication · Rubyonrails
CVE-2016-6317
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedAction Record in Ruby on Rails 4.2.x before 4.2.7.1 does not properly consider differences in parameter handling between the Active Record component and the JSON implementation, which allows remote attackers to bypass intended database-query restrictions and perform NULL checks or trigger missing WHERE clauses via a crafted request, as demonstrated by certain "[nil]" values, a related issue to CVE-2012-2660, CVE-2012-2694, and CVE-2013-0155.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceA parameter handling vulnerability in Ruby on Rails 4.2.x before 4.2.7.1 allows attackers to bypass database query restrictions by exploiting differences in how Active Record and JSON implementations process parameters. Crafted requests with '[nil]' values enable NULL checks or trigger missing WHERE clauses, a known pattern related to prior Rails parameter injection vulnerabilities (CVE-2012-2660, CVE-2012-2694, CVE-2013-0155).
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data
RailsApplication
= 4.2.0= 4.2.1= 4.2.2= 4.2.3= 4.2.4= 4.2.5= 4.2.5.1= 4.2.5.2= 4.2.6= 4.2.7CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check installed Rails versionRun 'rails -v' in the application directory or check the Gemfile.lock for the rails gem versionAffected if The version is 4.2.0 through 4.2.7 (any 4.2.x version before 4.2.7.1)
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Verify Active Record is in useCheck if config/application.rb or Gemfile.lock includes the activerecord gem, which is the default ORM in Rails 4.2.xAffected if Active Record is enabled (this is the default in Rails 4.2.x and required for this vulnerability)
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Inspect JSON parameter handlingReview application controllers and look for where params are passed directly to Active Record queries (e.g., Model.where(params))Affected if Application passes request parameters directly to Active Record query methods without explicit whitelisting
The environment is affected if Rails version 4.2.0 through 4.2.7 is in use and the application uses Active Record with parameters passed to query methods.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataUpgrade Ruby on Rails to version 4.2.7.1 or later to patch this vulnerability. This is a known class of mass assignment/parameter injection flaw requiring the framework update.
Fix this in Rails
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,752.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-6317 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2016-6317 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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