dbcve.org
Elasticsearch X PackDatabase / datastore · Elastic

CVE-2018-3823

MEDIUM · 5.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2018-09-19
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.6.9 / 6.2.4 or later.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable

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 · unedited
X-Pack Machine Learning versions before 6.2.4 and 5.6.9 had a cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability. Users with manage_ml permissions could create jobs containing malicious data as part of their configuration that could allow the attacker to obtain sensitive information from or perform destructive actions on behalf of other ML users viewing the results of the jobs.

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 confidence

XSS vulnerability in X-Pack Machine Learning allows users with manage_ml permissions to inject malicious scripts through job configurations. When other ML users view job results, the injected scripts execute, enabling attackers to steal sensitive information or perform destructive actions on behalf of victims.

MitigationUpgrade X-Pack Machine Learning to version 6.2.4 or later, or 5.6.9 or later, to patch the XSS vulnerability.

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
Elasticsearch X PackDatabase / datastore
Affected:< 5.6.9>= 6.0.0, < 6.2.4
Kibana X PackApplication
Affected:< 5.6.9>= 6.0.0, < 6.2.4
Logstash X PackApplication
Affected:< 5.6.9>= 6.1.0, < 6.2.4

CVSS 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
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify which Elastic product with X-Pack ML is running
    Determine if Elasticsearch, Kibana, or Logstash with X-Pack is installed by checking for the respective service and its version file. For Elasticsearch: check /usr/share/elasticsearch/lib or the installed package. For Kibana: check /usr/share/kibana or the installed package. For Logstash: check /usr/share/logstash or the installed package.
    Affected if Any of Elasticsearch, Kibana, or Logstash with X-Pack Machine Learning is running and its version falls within the affected ranges (< 5.6.9, >= 6.0.0 and < 6.2.4, or for Logstash >= 6.1.0 and < 6.2.4)
  2. Check installed X-Pack ML version in Elasticsearch
    Run `bin/elasticsearch --version` or check the installed X-Pack plugin version with `bin/elasticsearch-plugin list | grep x-pack` and compare against the package version. For Debian/RPM packages, use `dpkg -l` or `rpm -qa | grep x-pack`.
    Affected if The installed X-Pack version is less than 5.6.9, or greater than or equal to 6.0.0 but less than 6.2.4
  3. Check installed X-Pack ML version in Kibana
    Run `bin/kibana --version` or check the package version. For Debian/RPM packages, use `dpkg -l` or `rpm -qa | grep kibana-x-pack`. The X-Pack version matches the Kibana version.
    Affected if The installed Kibana X-Pack version is less than 5.6.9, or greater than or equal to 6.0.0 but less than 6.2.4
  4. Check if X-Pack Machine Learning feature is enabled
    For Elasticsearch, verify ML is enabled by checking the elasticsearch.yml configuration file for `xpack.ml.enabled: true` (default is true). For Kibana, verify in kibana.yml that X-Pack ML is not explicitly disabled.
    Affected if X-Pack Machine Learning is enabled (the default setting), which is required for the XSS to be exploitable
  5. Check for existing ML job configurations
    Use the Machine Learning API to list jobs: `GET _xpack/ml/anomaly_detectors` with appropriate credentials. Review job configurations for any unexpected or suspicious script content in job definitions.
    Affected if There are existing ML job configurations and the X-Pack ML version is vulnerable; however, an attacker with manage_ml permissions could inject malicious scripts even if no jobs exist yet

A user is affected if they run any Elastic product (Elasticsearch, Kibana, or Logstash) with X-Pack Machine Learning enabled and the installed version falls within the vulnerable ranges (before 5.6.9, or between 6.0.0/6.1.0 and 6.2.4 depending on the product).

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Upgrade available Upgrade to 5.6.9 / 6.2.4 or later
Fixed in 5.6.96.2.4
Interim mitigation

Upgrade X-Pack Machine Learning to version 6.2.4 or later, or 5.6.9 or later, to patch the XSS vulnerability.

Fix this in Elasticsearch X Pack Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,480
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,968.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-3823 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2018-3823 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data