CVE-2023-38053
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 · uneditedA BOLA vulnerability in GET, PUT, DELETE /settings/{settingName} allows a low privileged user to fetch, modify or delete the settings of any user (including admin). This results in unauthorized access and unauthorized data manipulation.
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 BOLA (Broken Object Level Authorization) vulnerability exists in the /settings/{settingName} endpoints (GET, PUT, DELETE methods) where the application fails to verify that the authenticated user has permission to access the specific setting resource. This allows any authenticated low-privileged user to read, modify, or delete settings belonging to other users, including administrators, by manipulating the settingName parameter.
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< 1.5.0CVSS 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
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/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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Identify installed Easyappointments versionCheck the version file or composer.json in the web root directory to determine the exact version numberAffected if version is below 1.5.0 (e.g., 1.4.x, 1.3.x, etc.)
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Verify API endpoint availabilityConfirm that the REST API endpoints /settings/{settingName} are accessible in the application by reviewing the API routes configuration or testing endpoint accessibilityAffected if the /settings/{settingName} endpoints exist and accept requests
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Test cross-user setting access as low-privileged userCreate or use a low-privileged test account, then attempt to GET, PUT, or DELETE a setting belonging to a different user by manipulating the settingName parameter (e.g., /settings/admin_email or /settings/site_name)Affected if the request succeeds and returns or modifies settings belonging to another user without authorization errors
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Inspect authorization logic in settings controllerReview the source code of the settings controller (typically in /application/controllers/api/Settings.php or similar path) to verify that user ownership validation exists before returning or modifying setting dataAffected if no code validates that the requesting user owns or has permission to access the requested settingName
If running Easyappointments version below 1.5.0 and the settings API endpoints allow authenticated low-privileged users to access/modify other users settings without proper authorization checks, the environment is vulnerable to CVE-2023-38053.
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.
dbcve · scoped1.5.0
Implement proper object-level authorization checks on all /settings/{settingName} endpoints to verify the requesting user owns or has permission to access the requested setting before returning or modifying any data.
Easyappointments 1.5.0
- 1. Back up your current Easyappointments installation and database
- 2. Download Easyappointments version 1.5.0 from the official GitHub repository (github.com/alextselegidis/easyappointments)
- 3. Replace the existing application files with the new version 1.5.0 files
- 4. Verify that the application functions correctly after the upgrade
- 5. Test that the /settings/{settingName} endpoints now properly enforce authorization checks
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing3.0 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 $3,984.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-38053 — 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-2023-38053 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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