Chat participant impersonation via unvalidated WebSocket session
Published Jan 18, 2022 · Updated Apr 22, 2025
Improper authentication in OnionShare 2.3 through 2.4 allows remote authenticated users to send chat messages as another participant. The chat WebSocket accepts update_username and text events from a client that suppresses the joined event, leaving the session off the user list while permitting reuse of an existing username. Access to the chat environment is required; forged messages are indistinguishable from legitimate ones, but the technique does not read the conversation.
Summary
What happened
Improper authentication in OnionShare 2.3 through 2.4 allows remote authenticated users to send chat messages as another participant. The chat WebSocket accepts update_username and text events from a client that suppresses the joined event, leaving the session off the user list while permitting reuse of an existing username. Access to the chat environment is required; forged messages are indistinguishable from legitimate ones, but the technique does not read the conversation.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2022-21692
- Published
- Jan 18, 2022
- Updated
- Apr 22, 2025
- Vendor
- OnionShare
- Product
- OnionShare
- Classifications
- CWE-287, T1036
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jan 18, 2022CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Apr 22, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
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- Affected versionversion=< 2.5
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Public exploit references
- Upstream crafted-client reproduction procedureproof of concept · demonstrated
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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