CVE-2023-29212

xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-panels-ui Eval Injection vulnerability

Workarounds

The issue can be fixed manually applying this patch.

References

• https://github.com/xwiki/xwiki-platform/commit/22f249a0eb9f2a64214628217e812a994419b69f#diff-a51a252f0190274464027342b4e3eafc4ae32de4d9c17ef166e54fc5454c5689R214-R217
• https://jira.xwiki.org/browse/XWIKI-20293

For more information

If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:

• Open an issue in Jira XWiki.org
• Email us at Security Mailing List

Any user with edit rights can execute arbitrary Groovy, Python or Velocity code in XWiki leading to full access to the XWiki installation. The root cause is improper escaping of the included pages in the included documents edit panel.

A proof of concept exploit is to edit a document and add the following code before saving.

{{display reference="{{cache~}~}{{groovy~}~}println(~"Hello from Groovy~" + ~" in included document!~"){{/groovy~}~}{{/cache~}~}"/}}

expected
The right had side panels contain:

One included page: 
{{cache}}{{groovy}}println("Hello from Groovy" + " in included document!"){{/groovy}}{{/cache}}

actual
The right had side panels contain:

One included page:
    XWiki.Hello from Groovy in included document!

Untrusted input is evaluated as executable code within the application's runtime environment. Typical impact: arbitrary code execution within the application's privilege context.

CVE-2023-29212 has a CVSS score of 9.9 (Critical). The vector is network-reachable, low privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (14.4.7, 14.10); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Kodem intelligence

Already deployed Kodem?

The problem has been patched on XWiki 14.4.7, and 14.10.

1. What is CVE-2023-29212? CVE-2023-29212 is a critical-severity code injection vulnerability in org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-panels-ui (maven), affecting versions >= 14.0-rc-1, < 14.4.7. It is fixed in 14.4.7, 14.10. Untrusted input is evaluated as executable code within the application's runtime environment.
2. How severe is CVE-2023-29212? CVE-2023-29212 has a CVSS score of 9.9 (Critical). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
3. Which versions of org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-panels-ui are affected by CVE-2023-29212? org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-panels-ui (maven) versions >= 14.0-rc-1, < 14.4.7 is affected.
4. Is there a fix for CVE-2023-29212? Yes. CVE-2023-29212 is fixed in 14.4.7, 14.10. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is CVE-2023-29212 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2023-29212 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
6. What actually determines whether CVE-2023-29212 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
7. How do I fix CVE-2023-29212?
   • Upgrade org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-panels-ui to 14.4.7 or later
   • Upgrade org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-panels-ui to 14.10 or later

Other vulnerabilities in org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-panels-ui