CVE-2017-17519
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 · uneditedbatteriesConfig.mlp in OCaml Batteries Included (aka ocaml-batteries) 2.6 does not validate strings before launching the program specified by the BROWSER environment variable, which might allow remote attackers to conduct argument-injection attacks via a crafted URL.
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 confidenceThe batteriesConfig.mlp module in OCaml Batteries Included 2.6 uses the BROWSER environment variable to launch a web browser without validating input strings, allowing remote attackers to inject arbitrary arguments into the browser command through crafted URLs.
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= 2.6CVSS 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
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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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Identify installed version of OCaml BatteriesRun 'ocamlfind query batteries' or check the package manager (opam list batteries, apt list libbatteries-ocaml, etc.) to determine the installed version of the batteries packageAffected if The installed version is exactly 2.6.0 or 2.6 (no patch version)
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Locate the batteriesConfig.mlp moduleSearch for the file batteriesConfig.mlp in the OCaml batteries library path, typically found in the installation directory (e.g., opam share batteries/include/batteriesConfig.mlp or similar)Affected if The batteriesConfig.mlp file exists in the installed package and contains code that reads the BROWSER environment variable
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Check for BROWSER environment variable usageExamine the batteriesConfig.mlp source code (if accessible) or run 'grep -r BROWSER' within the batteries library files to identify where the BROWSER environment variable is readAffected if Code in the module reads the BROWSER environment variable without sanitization
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Identify code paths that invoke browsers using this moduleSearch for function calls that execute external commands using the BROWSER variable, such as Sys.command, Unix.exec, or similar execution functions within or dependent on batteriesConfig.mlpAffected if The application or library code uses the BROWSER variable from this module to launch a web browser
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Verify external input can reach the BROWSER variableReview application code that calls the batteriesConfig module to determine if user-controlled or remote input (such as URLs) can influence the browser command stringAffected if Remote or untrusted input (e.g., URLs from external sources) can be passed to the browser launching function without validation
A user is affected if OCaml Batteries version 2.6 is installed AND the batteriesConfig.mlp module is used to launch a browser with the BROWSER environment variable AND external/remote input can reach that browser command without validation.
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 dataImplement strict input validation and sanitization for any strings used with the BROWSER environment variable, and use an allowlist approach for permitted browser arguments.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-17519 — 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-2017-17519 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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