CVE-2023-37912

XWiki Rendering's footnote macro vulnerable to privilege escalation via the footnote macro

Workarounds

There is no workaround apart from upgrading to a fixed version of the footnote macro.

References

• https://jira.xwiki.org/browse/XRENDERING-688
• https://github.com/xwiki/xwiki-rendering/commit/5f558b8fac8b716d19999225f38cb8ed0814116e

The footnote macro executed its content in a potentially different context than the one in which it was defined. In particular in combination with the include macro, this allows privilege escalation from a simple user account in XWiki to programming rights and thus remote code execution, impacting the confidentiality, integrity and availability of the whole XWiki installation.

To reproduce, perform the following steps:

1. Edit your user profile with the object editor and add an object of type DocumentSheetBinding with value XWiki.ClassSheet
2. Edit your user profile with the wiki editor and add the syntax {{footnote}}{{groovy}}println("Hello " + "from groovy!"){{/groovy}}{{/footnote}}

When the text "Hello from groovy!" is displayed at the bottom of the document, the installation is vulnerable. Instead, an error should be displayed.

CVE-2023-37912 has a CVSS score of 8.8 (High). 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 (14.10.6, 15.1-rc-1); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Kodem intelligence

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This vulnerability has been patched in XWiki 14.10.6 and 15.1-rc-1.

1. What is CVE-2023-37912? CVE-2023-37912 is a high-severity security vulnerability in org.xwiki.rendering:xwiki-rendering-macro-footnotes (maven), affecting versions < 14.10.6. It is fixed in 14.10.6, 15.1-rc-1.
2. How severe is CVE-2023-37912? CVE-2023-37912 has a CVSS score of 8.8 (High). 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 packages are affected by CVE-2023-37912?
   • org.xwiki.rendering:xwiki-rendering-macro-footnotes (maven) (versions < 14.10.6)
   • org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-core-rendering-macro-footnotes (maven) (versions < 14.10.6)
4. Is there a fix for CVE-2023-37912? Yes. CVE-2023-37912 is fixed in 14.10.6, 15.1-rc-1. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is CVE-2023-37912 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2023-37912 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-2023-37912 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-2023-37912?
   • Upgrade org.xwiki.rendering:xwiki-rendering-macro-footnotes to 14.10.6 or later
   • Upgrade org.xwiki.rendering:xwiki-rendering-macro-footnotes to 15.1-rc-1 or later
   • Upgrade org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-core-rendering-macro-footnotes to 14.10.6 or later