# CVE-2020-28452: Cross-site Request Forgery (CSRF)

> Attackers can bypass CSRF protection in Akka HTTP session library by forging requests with matching token values, potentially allowing unauthorized actions.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.3 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L`)
- **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:** 20 Jan 2021
- **Updated:** 16 Sep 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-4jf5-jggp-g56j

## What is CVE-2020-28452?

CVE-2020-28452 is a medium-severity vulnerability in com.softwaremill.akka-http-session:core_2.11, published on 20 Jan 2021. 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

This affects the package com.softwaremill.akka-http-session:core_2.12 from 0 and before 0.6.1; all versions of package com.softwaremill.akka-http-session:core_2.11; the package com.softwaremill.akka-http-session:core_2.13 from 0 and before 0.6.1. CSRF protection can be bypassed by forging a request that contains the same value for both the X-XSRF-TOKEN header and the XSRF-TOKEN cookie value, as the check in randomTokenCsrfProtection only checks that the two values are equal and non-empty.

Weakness: CWE-352 (Cross-Site Request Forgery)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-28452?

2 open source packages ship an affected version, including com.softwaremill.akka-http-session:core_2.12. It affects 1 product.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `com.softwaremill.akka-http-session:core_2.12` | Maven | From 0.3.0 | 0.6.1 |
| `com.softwaremill.akka-http-session:core_2.12` | Maven | From 0.3.0 | 0.6.1 |

Products: Softwaremill Akka-Http-Session.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-28452?

Upgrade com.softwaremill.akka-http-session:core_2.12 to 0.6.1 or later.

## Is CVE-2020-28452 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-28452 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in com.softwaremill.akka-http-session:core_2.11

- [CVE-2020-7780](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-7780/): Cross-site Request Forgery (CSRF) (medium 6.3)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2020-28452 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-28452 is a medium-severity vulnerability in com.softwaremill.akka-http-session:core_2.11, published on 20 Jan 2021. 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-2020-28452 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- com.softwaremill.akka-http-session:core_2.12 (Maven): affected from 0.3.0; fixed in 0.6.1
- com.softwaremill.akka-http-session:core_2.12 (Maven): affected from 0.3.0; fixed in 0.6.1

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-2020-28452/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-28452/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-28452
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-28452
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-28452

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-28452/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.