Silverstripe GraphQL has DDOS Vulnerability due to lack of protection against recursive queries
Published Oct 16, 2023 · Updated Nov 3, 2026
Original summary
Normalized public record · Updated Nov 3, 2026
Silverstripe GraphQL has DDOS Vulnerability due to lack of protection against recursive queries
Publisher and source text is retained separately from QFinch interpretation.
QFinch assessment
An attacker could use a recursive graphql query to execute a Distributed Denial of Service attack (DDOS attack) against a website. This mostly affects websites with publicly exposed graphql schemas.
Potential impact
An attacker could use a recursive graphql query to execute a Distributed Denial of Service attack (DDOS attack) against a website. This mostly affects websites with publicly exposed graphql schemas. If your Silverstripe CMS project does not expose a public facing graphql schema, a user account is required to trigger the DDOS attack. If your site is hosted behind a content delivery network (CDN), such as Imperva or CloudFlare, this may further mitigate the risk. The fix includes some new configuration options which you might want to tweak for your project, based on your own requirements. See the documentation in the references for details.
Evidence: public source recordsAffected products
| Affected package, product or range | Fix status |
|---|---|
| Consult the referenced vendor advisory for affected versions. | Consult source advisory |
Matching a version is only one part of assessing exposure. QFinch has not assessed your environment on this public page.
Remediation
Apply the vendor-supported fixed release or mitigation, then verify the affected component is no longer reachable.
- Confirm the affected product and reachable code path exist in your environment.
- Apply the vendor-supported patch or mitigation from the primary advisory.
- Rescan the exact deployed revision and retain verification evidence.
Evidence coverage
- SSVC priority
- MEDIUM
- Confidence
- Not available
- Aliases
- None reported
Scores appear only when corresponding evidence exists. Missing data is never interpreted as zero risk.
Sources and record history
- Security advisory ↗
- Patch commit ↗
- https://docs.silverstripe.org/en/developer_guides/graphql/security_and_best_practices/recursive_or_complex_queries ↗
- Source repository ↗
- https://www.silverstripe.org/download/security-releases/CVE-2023-40180 ↗
Record history
Published Oct 16, 2023 · Last refreshed Nov 3, 2026