Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This is a browser-based script injection issue in govuk_tech_docs. If a vulnerable documentation site displays a malicious search result, JavaScript can run in a user's browser. The business risk is mainly user trust, session exposure, and content tampering, not server compromise.
Executive priority
Treat this as a moderate web application dependency issue. Patch during the normal security update cycle, faster for public documentation sites used by authenticated staff, customers, or partners. There is no source-provided evidence of active exploitation.
Technical view
CVE-2024-22048 is a CWE-79 cross-site scripting issue affecting govuk_tech_docs versions from 2.0.2 before 3.3.1. The trigger is a malicious search result displayed on the search page. CVSS 3.1 is 6.1: network-reachable, low complexity, no privileges, user interaction required, changed scope, low confidentiality and integrity impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is likely limited to sites running govuk_tech_docs 2.0.2 through versions before 3.3.1, particularly where the search page can display attacker-influenced results. Organizations not using this gem or already on 3.3.1 or later are not indicated as affected by the provided sources.
Exploitation context
The bundle does not cite active exploitation, and KEV is false. Exploitation requires a user to view a malicious search result on a vulnerable search page. The provided sources do not establish public exploit availability or real-world attacks.
Researcher notes
Focus analysis on search-result rendering and output encoding in govuk_tech_docs before 3.3.1. Do not assume other GOV.UK components are affected. The source bundle gives the vulnerability condition and affected range but not detailed exploit mechanics.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade govuk_tech_docs to version 3.3.1 or later.
- Review the GitHub advisory and v3.3.1 release notes before rollout.
- Prioritize externally reachable documentation sites with search enabled.
- Clear or rebuild search indexes after upgrading if vendor guidance recommends it.
- Monitor vendor guidance for any follow-up fixes or configuration advice.
Validation and detection
- Inventory applications and repositories using the govuk_tech_docs package.
- Confirm deployed versions are not 2.0.2 through below 3.3.1.
- Identify public search pages generated by govuk_tech_docs.
- In staging, verify search results render untrusted content as text, not executable markup.
- Review dependency scanning results for GHSA-x2xw-hw8g-6773 or CVE-2024-22048.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-79: User-session and phishing behavior lookup
Client-side and session-facing weaknesses should be reviewed alongside initial-access and user-execution behaviors. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2024-22048 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Medium
- CVSS
- 6.1 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
SSVC decision data
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N2.82.7CISA-ADPVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
6.1MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N
Vulnerability timeline
Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.
- CVE reservedCVE Program
The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.
- CVE publishedCVE Program
The CVE record was published.
- CVE updatedCVE Program
The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.
ADP provider summaries
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://github.com/alphagov/tech-docs-gem/security/advisories/GHSA-x2xw-hw8g-6773CVE reference, VulnCheck · vendor-advisory
- https://github.com/alphagov/tech-docs-gem/pull/323CVE reference, VulnCheck · issue-tracking
- https://github.com/alphagov/tech-docs-gem/releases/tag/v3.3.1CVE reference, VulnCheck · related
- https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-x2xw-hw8g-6773CVE reference, VulnCheck · vendor-advisory
- https://vulncheck.com/advisories/vc-advisory-GHSA-x2xw-hw8g-6773CVE reference, VulnCheck · third-party-advisory
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')
Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.