html_sanitize_ex HTML5 scrubber keeps attacker-supplied form-association attributes, allowing form hijacking
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- Active
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Attack requirements
- Present
- Impact type
- Spoofing
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · None
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 4.0 · CNA. Fix status from CNA. Impact type from CWE-601.
Summary
URL Redirection to Untrusted Site ('Open Redirect') vulnerability in the HTML5 scrubber in rrrene html_sanitize_ex allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to retarget a form already on the rendering page and receive whatever the victim submits, including credentials, via the form and formaction attributes on an <input> element in sanitized HTML. HTML's form attribute associates an input with any form on the page by its id even when the input sits outside that form, and formaction on a submit control overrides the owning form's action. Neither attribute receives a scheme check, so an absolute cross-origin URL survives sanitizing. No script executes. The scrubber allows neither form nor button, so the attacker cannot introduce a form of their own and the rendering page must already contain a form carrying an id. This issue affects html_sanitize_ex: from 0.3.1 before 1.4.5 and from 1.5.0-rc.0 before 1.5.3.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
Remediation
- Fix · CNA html_sanitize_ex (rrrene) Fixed in 1.4.5, 1.5.3
Fixed in the same release
Records fixed by the same vendor advisory or release, as the CNA lists them.
- Release ·
rrrene html_sanitize_ex 1.4.5, 1.5.3
5 records Highest priority Priority LOW 5 LOW
Other records, highest priority first
- TI-2026-48335 Quadratic sibling re-flattening in the html_sanitize_ex traversal engine allows CPU-exhaustion denial of servicePriority LOW 37
- TI-2026-48334 Quadratic regex backtracking in the html_sanitize_ex CSS scrubber allows CPU-exhaustion denial of servicePriority LOW 37
- TI-2026-47464 html_sanitize_ex HTML5 scrubber keeps attacker-supplied `<object>` elements, allowing untrusted content embeddingPriority LOW 13
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-66370
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-r8xc-fmjg-37c5
References
Patch 4
More rrrene Htmlsanitizeex vulnerabilities
- TI-2026-48335 Quadratic sibling re-flattening in the html_sanitize_ex traversal engine allows CPU-exhaustion denial of service CVSS 4.0HIGH 8.2
- TI-2026-48334 Quadratic regex backtracking in the html_sanitize_ex CSS scrubber allows CPU-exhaustion denial of service CVSS 4.0HIGH 8.2
- TI-2026-47464 html_sanitize_ex HTML5 scrubber keeps attacker-supplied `<object>` elements, allowing untrusted content embedding CVSS 4.0LOW 2.3
- TI-2026-47457 html_sanitize_ex HTML5 scrubber keeps attacker-supplied meta refresh, allowing forced cross-origin redirection CVSS 4.0LOW 2.3
- TI-2026-48333 CSS sanitizer allowlist bypass in html_sanitize_ex via non-declaration input CVSS 4.0LOW 2.3
Sources
- CVE-2026-66370 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-66370 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-r8xc-fmjg-37c5 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences