# CVE-2021-28145: Concrete CMS Cross-site Scripting via Survey Blocks

> Authenticated users with Editor privileges can execute arbitrary scripts via crafted survey blocks in Concrete CMS.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.4 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 18 Mar 2021
- **Updated:** 3 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-7388-7vq2-m4f4

## What is CVE-2021-28145?

CVE-2021-28145 is a medium-severity cross-site scripting vulnerability in Concretecms Concrete Cms, published on 18 Mar 2021. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

Concrete CMS (formerly concrete5) before 8.5.5 allows remote authenticated users to conduct XSS attacks via a crafted survey block. This requires at least Editor privileges.

Weakness: CWE-79 (Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-28145?

2 open source packages ship an affected version, including concrete5/concrete5. It affects 1 product.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `concrete5/concrete5` | Packagist | All versions | 8.5.5 |
| `concrete5/concrete5` | Packagist | All versions | 8.5.5 |

Products: Concretecms Concrete Cms.

## How do I fix CVE-2021-28145?

Upgrade concrete5/concrete5 to 8.5.5 or later.

## Is CVE-2021-28145 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-28145 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Concretecms Concrete Cms

- [CVE-2023-48648](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-48648/): Concrete CMS allows unauthorized access because directories can be created with insecure permissions (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2022-21829](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-21829/): Code injection in concrete CMS (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2021-22958](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-22958/): Server-Side Request Forgery vulnerability in concrete5 (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2021-40098](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-40098/): Path traversal in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2026-8134](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-8134/): Concrete CMS Vulnerable to Relative Path Traversal (critical 9.4)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2021-28145 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2021-28145 is a medium-severity cross-site scripting vulnerability in Concretecms Concrete Cms, published on 18 Mar 2021. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-28145 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- concrete5/concrete5 (Packagist): affected all versions; fixed in 8.5.5
- concrete5/concrete5 (Packagist): affected all versions; fixed in 8.5.5

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-2021-28145/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-28145/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-28145
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-28145
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-28145

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-28145/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.