requests.utils function accepts invalid ip/cidr input
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- Python
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Description
TLDR: On some libc implementations (e.g. glibc) the socket.inet_aton function parses IP strings trailed with whitespace and garbage, and this function is used by requests utility functions which if used externally, may cause bugs or/and security vulnerabilities.
An example of the issue can be seen below:

I have written a more detailed description of the socket.inet_aton's underlying problem on Python's bugtracker issue 37495. It is yet to be decided if this is going to be fixed in Python.
Expected Result
The requests.utils functions address_in_network, is_ipv4_address and is_valid_cidr should fail with invalid input.
Actual Result
Incorrect IP strings do not return an error and instead return as if the trailing garbage did not exist in the IP string.
Reproduction Steps
import requests
print(requests.utils.address_in_network('1.1.1.1 wtf', '1.1.1.1/24'))
print(requests.utils.is_ipv4_address('1.1.1.1 disconnect3d was here...'))
print(requests.utils.is_valid_cidr('1.1.1.1 obviously not but yes/24'))
System Information
The issue is related to libc implementation and has been tested on glibc 2.27 and 2.29.
It also occurs on MacOS which I am not sure if it is based on glibc.
Contributor guide
First steps
- Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
- Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
- Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
- Open a pull request that references the issue number.
Research direction
Start with the requests.utils entry points address_in_network, is_ipv4_address, and is_valid_cidr, and reproduce the examples using trailing whitespace or garbage. Compare their behavior across the mentioned libc implementations and add coverage showing that invalid input is rejected by all three functions.
Written by the indexing model from the issue text.
Assessment
- Tech stack
- python
- Domain
- networking, security
- Issue type
- Bug
- Difficulty
- 3/5
- Estimated time
- 1-2 days
- Activity status
- Stale
- Clarity
- Mostly clear
- Newbie friendliness
- 48/100