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GHSA-qx2v-qp2m-jg93
No affected components available
PostCSS: XSS via Unescaped </style> in CSS Stringify Output
Summary
PostCSS v8.5.5 (latest) does not escape </style> sequences when stringifying CSS ASTs. When user-submitted CSS is parsed and re-stringified for embedding in HTML <style> tags, </style> in CSS values breaks out of the style context, enabling XSS.
Proof of Concept
const postcss = require('postcss');
// Parse user CSS and re-stringify for page embedding
const userCSS = 'body { content: "</style><script>alert(1)</script><style>"; }';
const ast = postcss.parse(userCSS);
const output = ast.toResult().css;
const html = `<style>${output}</style>`;
console.log(html);
// <style>body { content: "</style><script>alert(1)</script><style>"; }</style>
//
// Browser: </style> closes the style tag, <script> executes
Tested output (Node.js v22, postcss v8.5.5):
Input: body { content: "</style><script>alert(1)</script><style>"; }
Output: body { content: "</style><script>alert(1)</script><style>"; }
Contains </style>: true
Impact
Impact non-bundler use cases since bundlers for XSS on their own. Requires some PostCSS plugin to have malware code, which can inject XSS to website.
Suggested Fix
Escape </style in all stringified output values:
output = output.replace(/<\/(style)/gi, '<\\/$1');
Credits
Discovered and reported by Sunil Kumar (@TharVid)
The vulnerability can be exploited over the network without needing physical access. It is easy for an attacker to exploit this vulnerability. An attacker does not need any special privileges or access rights. The attacker needs the user to perform some action, like clicking a link. The vulnerability can affect other systems as well, not just the initial system. There is a low impact on the confidentiality of the information. There is a low impact on the integrity of the data.
Exploitation attempts have been detected. Elevated vigilance and prompt remediation are advised.
The exploit probability is very low. The vulnerability is unlikely to be exploited in the next 30 days.
We did not find any exploit available. Neither in GitHub repositories nor in the Exploit-Database.
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