CVE-2023-22454
Discourse vulnerable to Cross-site Scripting through pending post titles descriptions
Discourse is an option source discussion platform. Prior to version 2.8.14 on the stable branch and version 3.0.0.beta16 on the beta and tests-passed branches, pending post titles can be used for cross-site scripting attacks. Pending posts can be created by unprivileged users when a category has the "require moderator approval of all new topics" setting set. This vulnerability can lead to a full XSS on sites which have modified or disabled Discourse’s default Content Security Policy. A patch is available in versions 2.8.14 and 3.0.0.beta16.
Attack profile
How easy it is to exploit
- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges needed
- Low
- User interaction
- Required
What an attacker can affect
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
Exploit likelihood
What each source reports
CVE List Score used
Discourse vulnerable to Cross-site Scripting through pending post titles descriptions
Discourse is an option source discussion platform. Prior to version 2.8.14 on the stable branch and version 3.0.0.beta16 on the beta and tests-passed branches, pending post titles can be used for cross-site scripting attacks. Pending posts can be created by unprivileged users when a category has the "require moderator approval of all new topics" setting set. This vulnerability can lead to a full XSS on sites which have modified or disabled Discourse’s default Content Security Policy. A patch is available in versions 2.8.14 and 3.0.0.beta16.
- Record
CVE-2023-22454- CVSS 3.1
- 8.0 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-79
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
EUVDEUVD-2023-26616
Discourse is an option source discussion platform. Prior to version 2.8.14 on the stable branch and version 3.0.0.beta16 on the beta and tests-passed branches, pending post titles can be used for cross-site scripting attacks. Pending posts can be created by unprivileged users when a category has the "require moderator approval of all new topics" setting set. This vulnerability can lead to a full XSS on sites which have modified or disabled Discourse’s default Content Security Policy. A patch is available in versions 2.8.14 and 3.0.0.beta16.
- Record
EUVD-2023-26616- CVSS 3.1
- 8.0 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - Updated
- 2026-11-02
NVD
Discourse is an option source discussion platform. Prior to version 2.8.14 on the stable branch and version 3.0.0.beta16 on the beta and tests-passed branches, pending post titles can be used for cross-site scripting attacks. Pending posts can be created by unprivileged users when a category has the "require moderator approval of all new topics" setting set. This vulnerability can lead to a full XSS on sites which have modified or disabled Discourse’s default Content Security Policy. A patch is available in versions 2.8.14 and 3.0.0.beta16.
- Record
CVE-2023-22454- CVSS 3.1
- 8.0 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - CVSS 3.1
- 6.1 Medium
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N - Weakness
- CWE-79
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSV
Discourse vulnerable to Cross-site Scripting through pending post titles descriptions
Discourse is an option source discussion platform. Prior to version 2.8.14 on the stable branch and version 3.0.0.beta16 on the beta and tests-passed branches, pending post titles can be used for cross-site scripting attacks. Pending posts can be created by unprivileged users when a category has the "require moderator approval of all new topics" setting set. This vulnerability can lead to a full XSS on sites which have modified or disabled Discourse’s default Content Security Policy. A patch is available in versions 2.8.14 and 3.0.0.beta16.
- Record
CVE-2023-22454- CVSS 3.1
- 8.0 High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - Weakness
- CWE-79
- Updated
- 2026-11-02
OSVBIT-discourse-2023-22454 No score
Discourse vulnerable to Cross-site Scripting through pending post titles descriptions
Discourse is an option source discussion platform. Prior to version 2.8.14 on the stable branch and version 3.0.0.beta16 on the beta and tests-passed branches, pending post titles can be used for cross-site scripting attacks. Pending posts can be created by unprivileged users when a category has the "require moderator approval of all new topics" setting set. This vulnerability can lead to a full XSS on sites which have modified or disabled Discourse’s default Content Security Policy. A patch is available in versions 2.8.14 and 3.0.0.beta16.
- Record
BIT-discourse-2023-22454- Updated
- 2026-11-02
Affected products
Affected packages
| Package | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|
discourseBitnami |
before 2.8.14 | 2.8.14 |
History
| Recorded | Changed | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| first indexed | CVE List, EUVD, NVD, OSV |
Dates are when Every CVE recorded each change. Upstream dates may differ.
In short
CVE-2023-22454 is a high vulnerability (CVSS 8.0) in Discourse, published January 5, 2023. No source lists public exploit code. EPSS puts the chance of exploitation in the next 30 days at 0.62%, the 49th percentile. Fixed in discourse 2.8.14.