CVE-2024-10033: Ansible Automation Platform XSS Vulnerability

CVE-2024-10033 Overview

CVE-2024-10033 is a Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the aap-gateway component of Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform. The flaw resides in the handling of the ?next= URL parameter, which fails to properly sanitize user-supplied input before use. Attackers can craft malicious URLs that trigger open redirects or execute arbitrary JavaScript in the context of an authenticated user's session. Successful exploitation can lead to session theft, credential harvesting, and unauthorized actions against the Ansible platform. The vulnerability requires user interaction, typically through a phishing link, and affects multiple Red Hat products including Ansible Automation Platform 2.5, Ansible Developer 1.2, and Ansible Inside 1.3.

Critical Impact
Attackers can hijack authenticated sessions and execute arbitrary scripts in the browser context of Ansible Automation Platform users via crafted ?next= URLs.

Affected Products

Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform 2.5
Red Hat Ansible Developer 1.2 and Ansible Inside 1.3
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 and 9 (when running the affected aap-gateway component)

Discovery Timeline

2024-10-16 - CVE-2024-10033 published to NVD
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-10033

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability is a reflected Cross-Site Scripting flaw [CWE-79] in the Ansible Automation Platform gateway. The aap-gateway component accepts a next query parameter that is used to redirect users after authentication or navigation events. The gateway reflects the attacker-controlled value back into the response without adequate encoding or validation, allowing injection of JavaScript payloads or arbitrary redirect targets.

Because the attack originates from the trusted gateway origin, injected scripts execute with full access to the victim's authenticated session. This enables theft of session cookies, API tokens, and automation credentials managed by the platform. The scoped impact extends beyond the vulnerable component because Ansible Automation Platform routinely manages privileged credentials for downstream infrastructure.

Root Cause

The root cause is improper neutralization of input during web page generation. The next parameter value is placed into HTML or JavaScript contexts without context-aware output encoding. The gateway also does not restrict redirect targets to a safe allowlist of internal paths, enabling open redirect behavior in addition to script injection.

Attack Vector

Exploitation is network-based and requires user interaction. An attacker crafts a URL pointing at the legitimate Ansible gateway, embedding a malicious payload in the next= parameter. The attacker delivers the URL through phishing, chat, or a compromised third-party site. When an authenticated user clicks the link, the gateway renders the payload, executing script in the victim's browser or redirecting them to an attacker-controlled page designed to steal credentials.

See the Red Hat CVE-2024-10033 Information for additional technical context.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-10033

Indicators of Compromise

Gateway access logs containing next= parameter values with URL-encoded <script>, javascript:, data:, or onerror= substrings.
Requests to aap-gateway endpoints where the next parameter points to external hosts rather than internal relative paths.
Anomalous outbound requests from user browsers to unfamiliar domains immediately after accessing Ansible gateway URLs.
Session token reuse from unexpected IP addresses or user agents following gateway redirects.

Detection Strategies

Deploy web application firewall rules that inspect and block malicious payloads in next and other redirect-style query parameters.
Correlate gateway HTTP logs with authentication events to identify successful logins followed by redirects to external origins.
Hunt in SIEM data for Ansible gateway requests containing suspicious URL-encoding patterns or script keywords in query strings.

Monitoring Recommendations

Enable verbose access logging on the aap-gateway component and forward logs to a centralized analytics platform.
Alert on bursts of 4xx or 3xx responses from the gateway that indicate reconnaissance or redirect abuse.
Monitor Content Security Policy (CSP) violation reports from browsers accessing the Ansible gateway for inline script execution attempts.

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-10033

Immediate Actions Required

Apply the Red Hat security update from RHSA-2024:8534 to all affected Ansible Automation Platform, Ansible Developer, and Ansible Inside installations.
Rotate session tokens, API keys, and any credentials managed by the platform that may have been exposed through user interaction with crafted URLs.
Educate administrators and operators to avoid clicking Ansible gateway links received from untrusted sources.

Patch Information

Red Hat has released fixed packages through Red Hat Security Advisory RHSA-2024:8534. The advisory updates the aap-gateway component to properly validate and encode the next parameter. Consult the Red Hat Bug Report #2319162 for component-level details and verify affected package versions against your installed inventory before deploying the update.

Workarounds

Restrict gateway access to trusted networks or VPN clients until the patch is applied.
Enforce a strict Content Security Policy that disables inline scripts and limits allowed script sources on the gateway.
Deploy reverse-proxy or WAF rules that strip or validate the next query parameter, allowing only relative internal paths.

bash

# Example WAF rule concept to block external redirects in the next parameter
# ModSecurity-style pseudo-rule
SecRule ARGS:next "@rx ^(?!/)(https?:|javascript:|data:)" \
  "id:1010033,phase:2,deny,status:400,\
   msg:'CVE-2024-10033: Blocked external or script redirect in next parameter'"