Overview
A critical security vulnerability, identified as CVE-2025-65036, has been discovered in the XWiki Remote Macros extension. This extension is designed to provide XWiki rendering macros that facilitate content migration from Confluence. The vulnerability, present in versions prior to 1.27.1, allows for Remote Code Execution (RCE) due to insufficient permission checks when executing Velocity macros from details pages. This means a malicious actor could potentially execute arbitrary code on the XWiki server.
Technical Details
The XWiki Remote Macros extension allows users to leverage Velocity macros to render content. Versions prior to 1.27.1 do not properly validate the permissions of users accessing details pages. This allows an unauthenticated or unauthorized user to inject malicious Velocity code into these pages, which is then executed by the XWiki server. The lack of permission checks bypasses intended security mechanisms and grants the attacker elevated privileges within the XWiki environment.
Specifically, the vulnerability resides in how the macro handles Velocity templates. Due to the missing permission check, the template gets rendered without proper authorization, enabling the attacker to inject arbitrary code.
CVSS Analysis
This vulnerability has been assigned a CVSS score of 8.3, indicating a HIGH severity. The CVSS vector reflects the following characteristics:
- Attack Vector (AV): Network (N)
- Attack Complexity (AC): Low (L)
- Privileges Required (PR): None (N)
- User Interaction (UI): None (N)
- Scope (S): Changed (C)
- Confidentiality Impact (C): High (H)
- Integrity Impact (I): High (H)
- Availability Impact (A): High (H)
The low attack complexity and no required privileges make this vulnerability particularly dangerous, as it can be exploited remotely without any prior authentication or interaction with a user.
Possible Impact
Successful exploitation of CVE-2025-65036 can have severe consequences, including:
- Remote Code Execution: An attacker can execute arbitrary code on the XWiki server, potentially gaining complete control of the system.
- Data Breach: Sensitive data stored within the XWiki instance could be accessed and exfiltrated by the attacker.
- System Compromise: The entire XWiki server and potentially other connected systems could be compromised.
- Denial of Service: An attacker could disrupt XWiki services, rendering the platform unusable for legitimate users.
Mitigation or Patch Steps
The recommended mitigation is to immediately upgrade your XWiki Remote Macros extension to version 1.27.1 or later. This version contains the necessary security fix to address the permission check vulnerability.
- Upgrade XWiki Remote Macros: Navigate to the XWiki Extension Manager and upgrade the Remote Macros extension to version 1.27.1 or later.
- Verify the Upgrade: After upgrading, verify that the new version is installed correctly.
- Monitor Logs: Monitor your XWiki logs for any suspicious activity that may indicate attempted exploitation.
References
- CVE ID: CVE-2025-65036
- GitHub Security Advisory: GHSA-472x-fwh9-r82f
- XWiki Official Website: XWiki.org
