VulnerabilityPublished 18 Apr 2023Updated 3 Nov 2025

CVE-2023-30608: andialbrecht sqlparse · ReDoS

Affects andialbrecht sqlparseSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 5.5 Medium : upgrade to 0.4.4 when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 09:15 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

5.5Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.9% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 61% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 0.4.4

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

Attack Vector: Local
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: Required
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: None
Integrity: None
Availability: High

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Local: The vulnerable component is not bound to the network stack and the attacker’s path is via read/write/execute capabilities. Either: the attacker exploits the vulnerability by accessing the target system locally (e.g., keyboard, console), or remotely (e.g., SSH); or the attacker relies on User Interaction by another person to perform actions required to exploit the vulnerability (e.g., tricking a legitimate user into opening a malicious document).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: Required: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability requires a user to take some action before the vulnerability can be exploited.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: None: There is no loss of confidentiality within the impacted component.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: High: There is total loss of availability, resulting in the attacker being able to fully deny access to resources in the impacted component; this loss is either sustained (while the attacker continues to deliver the attack) or persistent (the condition persists even after the attack has completed). Alternatively, the attacker has the ability to deny some availability, but the loss of availability presents a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component (e.g., the attacker cannot disrupt existing connections, but can prevent new connections; the attacker can repeatedly exploit a vulnerability that, in each instance of a successful attack, leaks a only small amount of memory, but after repeated exploitation causes a service to become completely unavailable).

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 18 Apr 2023
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Upgrade andialbrecht sqlparse to 0.4.4.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
PyPIsqlparse`pkg:pypi/sqlparse`Other threats	Affected <0.4.4	Fixed in 0.4.4

Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2023-30608, European organizations should immediately upgrade all instances of sqlparse to version 0.4.4 or later, where the vulnerability is fixed. Conduct a thorough inventory of Python applications and services to identify usage of sqlparse and verify the version in use. For environments where upgrading is not immediately feasible, consider implementing input validation and sanitization to limit exposure to maliciously crafted SQL inputs that could trigger the ReDoS condition. Monitor application performance and logs for unusual CPU spikes or slowdowns during SQL parsing operations. Employ runtime application self-protection (RASP) or Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) where applicable to detect and block suspicious input patterns. Additionally, incorporate this vulnerability into vulnerability management and patching workflows to ensure timely updates. Educate developers and DevOps teams about the risks of ReDoS and the importance of using updated dependencies.

Description

sqlparse is a non-validating SQL parser module for Python. In affected versions the SQL parser contains a regular expression that is vulnerable to ReDoS (Regular Expression Denial of Service). This issue was introduced by commit `e75e358`. The vulnerability may lead to Denial of Service (DoS). This issues has been fixed in sqlparse 0.4.4 by commit `c457abd5f`. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this issue.

Impact

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2023-30608 is the potential for Denial of Service attacks against applications using vulnerable versions of sqlparse. This can lead to service outages, degraded performance, and operational disruptions, particularly in environments where SQL parsing is frequent and input is user-controlled or externally sourced. Industries relying on Python-based data processing, web services, or database management tools that incorporate sqlparse may experience availability issues, affecting business continuity and user experience. While the vulnerability does not compromise data confidentiality or integrity, the availability impact can have downstream effects on compliance with service-level agreements and regulatory requirements. Organizations with critical infrastructure or high-availability demands may face increased risk if the vulnerability is exploited. The lack of known exploits in the wild reduces immediate threat but does not eliminate the risk, especially as proof-of-concept attacks could emerge.

CWE-1333Inefficient Regular Expression Complexity (opens in a new tab)
Base weaknessLikelihood of exploit: High
The product uses a regular expression with a worst-case computational complexity that is inefficient and possibly exponential.
Architecture and Design
Use regular expressions that do not support backtracking, e.g. by removing nested quantifiers.
System Configuration
Set backtracking limits in the configuration of the regular expression implementation, such as PHP's pcre.backtrack_limit. Also consider limits on execution time for the process.
Implementation
Do not use regular expressions with untrusted input. If regular expressions must be used, avoid using backtracking in the expression.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
File Upload (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V12.1.1 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Regular Expression Exponential Blowup (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 4 Nov 2025, 00:16 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-1333

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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