Overview
CVE-2025-13947 describes a high-severity vulnerability discovered in WebKitGTK, a widely used web browser engine. This flaw allows for the potential disclosure of sensitive files that the user has read access to. The vulnerability stems from inadequate validation of drag-and-drop operations, specifically failing to verify if a drag operation originated from outside the browser context. This can be exploited via a malicious website and user interaction.
Technical Details
The root cause of CVE-2025-13947 lies in WebKitGTK’s insufficient validation of the origin of drag-and-drop events. Normally, drag-and-drop functionality is intended to facilitate moving or copying data between different applications or within the same application. However, WebKitGTK doesn’t properly check if a drag operation truly originated from outside the browser. A malicious website can craft a scenario where a user, tricked into believing they are dragging an object within the website, is in fact initiating a drag operation that targets a local file. If the user then drops this “object” onto another element within the browser, the contents of the local file the user has permissions to read can be exfiltrated.
This is possible because the browser can access file paths via the drag-and-drop API. If not validated correctly, a malicious actor can abuse this by initiating drag events programmatically from within the webpage itself, and access local files the user has permissions to read.
CVSS Analysis
This vulnerability has been assigned a CVSS score of 7.4, indicating a HIGH severity level. The CVSS vector reflects the following characteristics:
- Attack Vector (AV): Network (N) – The vulnerability can be exploited remotely.
- Attack Complexity (AC): High (H) – Requires specific conditions to be met, or user interaction to be exploited successfully.
- Privileges Required (PR): None (N) – No special privileges are required to exploit the vulnerability.
- User Interaction (UI): Required (R) – Exploitation requires user interaction (e.g., dragging and dropping a file).
- Scope (S): Changed (C) – An exploited vulnerability can affect resources beyond the security scope managed by the vulnerability’s authority.
- Confidentiality Impact (C): High (H) – There is a high impact to confidentiality, as sensitive information can be disclosed.
- Integrity Impact (I): None (N) – There is no impact to data integrity.
- Availability Impact (A): None (N) – There is no impact to system availability.
Possible Impact
The successful exploitation of CVE-2025-13947 can lead to the following consequences:
- Information Disclosure: Attackers can gain unauthorized access to sensitive files on the user’s system that they have read access to. This could include configuration files, documents, source code, or other confidential data.
- Privacy Violation: The disclosure of personal files can compromise user privacy.
- Further Exploitation: The leaked information can be used to further compromise the system or network.
The impact is significantly increased for users working with sensitive data or those who grant WebKitGTK based browsers access to sensitive file systems.
Mitigation and Patch Steps
To mitigate the risk posed by CVE-2025-13947, the following actions are recommended:
- Apply the Latest Security Patches: Upgrade WebKitGTK to the latest version that includes a fix for this vulnerability. Check the vendor’s security advisories for specific patch details and instructions.
- Exercise Caution with Drag-and-Drop Operations: Be wary of drag-and-drop operations, especially on unfamiliar or untrusted websites.
- Implement Security Policies: Enforce security policies that restrict user access to sensitive files and directories.
Contact your distribution vendor (e.g. Red Hat) for specific instructions on patching WebKitGTK.
