Check Point Advisories

Ruby on Rails XML Processor YAML Deserialization Code Execution (CVE-2013-0156)

Vulnerability
Protection

Check Point Reference:	CPAI-2013-023
Date Published:	20 Jan 2013
Severity:	Critical
Last Updated:	Thursday 09 January, 2025
Source:	CVE-2013-0156
Protection Provided by:	Security Gateway R75
Who is Vulnerable?	The Ruby on Rails Project Ruby on Rails 2.3 prior to 2.3.15 The Ruby on Rails Project Ruby on Rails 3.0 prior to 3.0.19 The Ruby on Rails Project Ruby on Rails 3.1 prior to 3.1.10 The Ruby on Rails Project Ruby on Rails 3.2 prior to 3.2.11
Vulnerability Description	A remote code execution vulnerability exists in Ruby on Rails.
Vulnerability Details	The vulnerability is due to automatically casting values from user-provided YAML and Symbol strings to certain data types without validating the input. The attacker connects to the target server and sends a specially crafted XML request containing an embedded YAML-encoded object to a Rails page. The vulnerability is triggered when the affected program processes the malicious request. Successful exploitation will result in arbitrary code execution within the context of service.

Protection Overview

This protection will detect and block attempts to exploit this vulnerability.

In order for the protection to be activated, update your product to the latest update. For information on how to update , go to SBP-2006-05, Protection tab and select the version of your choice.

Security Gateway R75 / R71 / R70

In the IPS tab, click Protections and find the Ruby on Rails XML Processor YAML Deserialization Code Execution protection using the Search tool and Edit the protection's settings.
Install policy on all modules.

SmartView Tracker will log the following entries:
Attack Name: Web Server Enforcement Violation
Attack Information: Ruby on Rails XML Processor YAML Deserialization Code Execution