# CVE-2018-5152: Information disclosure in Firefox

> Malicious WebExtensions can intercept Firefox Account login credentials and user data via the webRequest API, exposing sensitive information to attackers.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.5 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 11 Jun 2018
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-v8rx-7xrc-grgm, UBUNTU-CVE-2018-5152

## What is CVE-2018-5152?

CVE-2018-5152 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Canonical Ubuntu Linux, published on 11 Jun 2018. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

WebExtensions with the appropriate permissions can attach content scripts to Mozilla sites such as accounts.firefox.com and listen to network traffic to the site through the "webRequest" API. For example, this allows for the interception of username and an encrypted password during login to Firefox Accounts. This issue does not expose synchronization traffic directly and is limited to the process of user login to the website and the data displayed to the user once logged in. This vulnerability affects Firefox < 60.

Weakness: CWE-327 (Use of a Broken or Risky Cryptographic Algorithm)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2018-5152?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Canonical Ubuntu Linux, Mozilla Firefox.

## How do I fix CVE-2018-5152?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2018-5152 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-5152 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Canonical Ubuntu Linux

- [CVE-2020-11651](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-11651/): SaltStack Salt Authentication Bypass (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2020-7247](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-7247/): OpenSMTPD Remote Code Execution (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2019-16928](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-16928/): Exim Out-of-bounds Write (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2018-6789](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-6789/): Exim Buffer Overflow (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2015-2590](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-2590/): Oracle Java SE and Java SE Embedded Remote Code Execution (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2018-5152 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2018-5152 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Canonical Ubuntu Linux, published on 11 Jun 2018. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-5152 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Canonical Ubuntu Linux. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-5152/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-5152/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2018-5152
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-5152
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2018-5152

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-5152/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.