dbcve.org
DjangoFramework / library · Djangoproject

CVE-2023-41164

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-11-03
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 3.2.21 / 4.1.11 or later.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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
In Django 3.2 before 3.2.21, 4.1 before 4.1.11, and 4.2 before 4.2.5, django.utils.encoding.uri_to_iri() is subject to a potential DoS (denial of service) attack via certain inputs with a very large number of Unicode characters.

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

Django's uri_to_iri() function in django.utils.encoding is vulnerable to a denial of service attack when processing inputs containing a very large number of Unicode characters, causing excessive computational resource consumption.

MitigationUpgrade Django to version 3.2.21, 4.1.11, or 4.2.5 or later to patch the vulnerability. Consider rate limiting or input validation as an additional layer of defense.

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
DjangoFramework / library
Affected:>= 3.2, < 3.2.21>= 4.1, < 4.1.11>= 4.2, < 4.2.5
FedoraOperating system
Affected:= 39

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
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

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

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

  1. Determine installed Django version
    Run 'python -c "import django; print(django.get_version())"' or check via pip with 'pip show django' to see the installed version
    Affected if The version falls within 3.2.x before 3.2.21, 4.1.x before 4.1.11, or 4.2.x before 4.2.5
  2. Identify uri_to_iri usage in codebase
    Search project source code for calls to 'uri_to_iri' using grep or IDE search, for example: 'grep -r "uri_to_iri" .'
    Affected if The function is called within the application code, particularly with user-supplied or external input
  3. Check for views processing URIs or URLs
    Review views and URL handling code that processes incoming requests containing URIs, especially those passing request data to django.utils.encoding functions
    Affected if Views or utilities pass URI/URL parameters directly to uri_to_iri without validation on input length or character count
  4. Audit third-party packages using django.utils.encoding
    Review installed packages that may import and use uri_to_iri from django.utils.encoding, check their usage in your project
    Affected if Third-party packages in the project invoke uri_to_iri with untrusted input

You are affected if your Django version is below the patched releases (3.2.21, 4.1.11, 4.2.5) AND your application processes Unicode-containing URIs through the uri_to_iri function, as this combination enables the DoS attack vector.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 3.2.21 / 4.1.11 / 4.2.5 or later
Fixed in 3.2.214.1.114.2.5
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Django to version 3.2.21, 4.1.11, or 4.2.5 or later to patch the vulnerability. Consider rate limiting or input validation as an additional layer of defense.

Recommended fix High confidence

Django 3.2.21, 4.1.11, or 4.2.5 (depending on your current branch)

  1. Check current Django version using: python -c 'import django; print(django.get_version())'
  2. Determine your current Django branch (3.2.x, 4.1.x, or 4.2.x)
  3. For Django 3.2.x: Upgrade to 3.2.21 using: pip install 'Django>=3.2.21,<3.3'
  4. For Django 4.1.x: Upgrade to 4.1.11 using: pip install 'Django>=4.1.11,<4.2'
  5. For Django 4.2.x: Upgrade to 4.2.5 using: pip install 'Django>=4.2.5,<4.3'
  6. Verify installation: python -c 'import django; print(django.get_version())'
  7. Test application functionality to ensure compatibility
  8. If on Fedora 39: Run 'sudo dnf update python-django' to apply system package updates
Caveat Patch releases typically contain only bug fixes and security patches; review Django release notes for any minor behavior changes

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Django Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,720
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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-2023-41164 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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