Catalyst::Seal versions before 0.03 for Perl allow one request to disable a path or route…
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CISA ADP. Fix status from CNA.
Summary
Catalyst::Seal versions before 0.03 for Perl allow one request to disable a path or route a later one past an authorization check via a dispatch memo keyed on the request path alone. Catalyst::Seal replaces the dispatcher's prepare_action with a version that memoises how a path resolved: which dispatch type matched, at which level, and what was left over as arguments. The key is the request path and nothing else. Action roles that match on the method, content type, scheme or query make that resolution depend on state the key does not carry, so the memo answers for a request it was not built from. A path that resolves to no action is memoised as well, and replaying that entry returns without consulting any dispatch type, so no action is set and the request fails. A GET of a path whose action is declared POST-only therefore disables that path for every later request, the correct POST included. An entry that did resolve replays the level the earlier descent reached. Where a POST-only action sits below a shallower action on the same path, a GET memoises the shallow route, and a later POST is dispatched there with an auto() guarding the deeper controller never running. The memo is cleared only when an action is registered, which happens at setup, so an entry lasts for the life of the process, and its cap of 2048 entries bounds how many paths one caller can disable. In the configuration measured, the misroute lands on the less privileged action, so it is an authorization check not running rather than a privilege gain.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Total
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Catalyst-Seal | before 0.03 | 0.03 | Patch available | CNA |
- Catalyst-Seal Vendor— Affected before 0.03 Fixed in 0.03 Patch available CNA
Remediation
- Fix · CNA Catalyst-Seal Fixed in 0.03
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-85491
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-5qhg-xgvp-wq2g
References
Sources
- CVE-2026-85491 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-85491 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-5qhg-xgvp-wq2g · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
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