DependencyTrack / DependencyTrack/dependency-track

Include vulnerability aliases in search results and affected project counts

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enhancement
Dominant language
Java
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Description

### Current Behavior

When a vulnerability has aliases, such as a GHSA advisory linked to a CVE, the vulnerability search only seems to match the `Name` field.

As a result, searching for the CVE only returns the CVE entry, even if the actual affected projects are associated with the aliased GHSA entry.

Example:

| Name | Aliases | Projects |
|---|---|---:|
| `CVE-2026-63336` | `GHSA-5m9f-rphj-c435` | `0` |
| `GHSA-5m9f-rphj-c435` | `CVE-2026-63336` | `100` |

When searching for `CVE-2026-63336`, the result shows `Projects = 0`, which suggests that no project is affected.

However, searching for `GHSA-5m9f-rphj-c435` shows `Projects = 100`.

This can lead users to incorrectly conclude that they are not impacted when searching by CVE.

### Proposed Behavior

The vulnerability search should make the impact visible when vulnerabilities are linked through aliases.

Two possible approaches could address this:

### Option 1: Aggregate affected project counts across aliases

When a vulnerability has aliases, the `Projects` counter could include affected projects from aliased vulnerabilities.

For example, searching for `CVE-2026-63336` could show:

| Name | Aliases | Projects |
|---|---|---:|
| `CVE-2026-63336` | `GHSA-5m9f-rphj-c435` | `100` |

### Option 2: Search in both `Name` and `Aliases`

The vulnerability search filter could match both the `Name` field and the `Aliases` field.

For example, searching for `CVE-2026-63336` would return:

| Name | Aliases | Projects |
|---|---|---:|
| `CVE-2026-63336` | `GHSA-5m9f-rphj-c435` | `0` |
| `GHSA-5m9f-rphj-c435` | `CVE-2026-63336` | `100` |

This would allow users to quickly identify that projects are affected through an aliased vulnerability.

The same behavior could also be considered in the **Affected Projects** tab of the vulnerability detail page, so that projects affected by aliased vulnerabilities are visible during impact analysis.

### Checklist

- [x] I have read and understand the [contributing guidelines](https://github.com/DependencyTrack/dependency-track/blob/main/CONTRIBUTING.md#filing-issues)
- [x] I have checked the [existing issues](https://github.com/DependencyTrack/dependency-track/issues) for whether this enhancement was already requested

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

Research direction

Start by locating the vulnerability search implementation and the Affected Projects tab, then trace how the Name, Aliases, and Projects fields are queried and counted. Compare the two proposed behaviors and define tests that show a CVE search surfaces impact from its linked GHSA, including the expected affected-project results.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
java
Domain
search, security
Issue type
Feature
Difficulty
4/5
Estimated time
3-5 days
Activity status
Active
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
48/100

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