# CVE-2023-39517: Cross site scripting (XSS) when clicking on an untrusted `` link in Joplin > Attackers can execute arbitrary shell commands via malicious image links in Joplin due to insufficient HTML sanitization and lack of sandboxing. - **Severity:** High 8.2 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:L/A:L`) - **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:** No - **Published:** 21 Jun 2024 - **Updated:** 2 Aug 2024 - **Also known as:** GHSA-2h88-m32f-qh5m ## What is CVE-2023-39517? CVE-2023-39517 is a high-severity cross-site scripting vulnerability in laurent22 joplin, published on 21 Jun 2024. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link. ### Official description Joplin is a free, open source note taking and to-do application. A Cross site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in affected versions allows clicking on an untrusted image link to execute arbitrary shell commands. The HTML sanitizer (`packages/renderer/htmlUtils.ts::sanitizeHtml`) preserves `` `` links. However, unlike `` links, the `target` and `href` attributes are not removed. Additionally, because the note preview pane isn't sandboxed to prevent top navigation, links with `target` set to `_top` can replace the toplevel electron page. Because any toplevel electron page, with Joplin's setup, has access to `require` and can require node libraries, a malicious replacement toplevel page can import `child_process` and execute arbitrary shell commands. This issue has been fixed in commit 7c52c3e9a81a52ef1b42a951f9deb9d378d59b0f which is included in release version 2.12.8. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability. Weakness: CWE-79 (Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation) ## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-39517? It affects 1 product. Products: Joplin Project Joplin. ## How do I fix CVE-2023-39517? No fix has been published for CVE-2023-39517 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available. ## Is CVE-2023-39517 being exploited? There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-39517 in the wild and no public exploit code. ## Other vulnerabilities in laurent22 joplin - [CVE-2022-23340](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-23340/): Joplin Vulnerable to Code Injection (critical 9.8) - [CVE-2024-40643](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-40643/): Joplin has a parsing error leading to Cross-site Scripting (XSS) (critical 9.7) - [CVE-2023-45673](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-45673/): Arbitrary code execution on click of PDF links in Joplin (high 8.9) - [CVE-2025-27134](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-27134/): Privilege escalation in Joplin server via user patch endpoint (high 8.8) - [CVE-2023-37898](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-37898/): Safe mode Cross-site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in Joplin (high 8.2) ## Fix prompt for AI coding agents ```text Check this codebase for CVE-2023-39517 and fix it if it is affected. What it is: CVE-2023-39517 is a high-severity cross-site scripting vulnerability in laurent22 joplin, published on 21 Jun 2024. 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-2023-39517 in the wild and no public exploit code. Affected product: laurent22 joplin. 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-2023-39517/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-39517/index.md) ``` ## Sources - CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-39517 - NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-39517 - OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-39517 --- From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-39517/ Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.