CVE-2022-31166 is a high-severity (CVSS 8.1) Improper Privilege Management vulnerability in org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore. 2 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore — see the affected versions and patch details below.
XWiki.WebHome vulnerable to Improper Privilege Management in XWiki resolving groups
Exploitation Status
Proof-of-concept exploit code exists
- CISA’s SSVC triage found public proof-of-concept exploit code for this CVE, though no confirmed active exploitation.
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2022-31166.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2022-31166 plotted by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). The shaded corner — EPSS 50%+ and CVSS 7.0+ — is where this CVE doesn't sit, though severity or exploitability alone can still warrant action.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 379,145 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore☕org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcoreReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Maven packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Impact
It's possible to exploit a bug in XWikiRights resolution of groups to obtain privilege escalation.
More specifically, editing a right with the object editor leads to adding a supplementary empty value to groups which is then resolved as a reference to XWiki.WebHome page. Adding an XWikiGroup xobject to that page then transforms it to a group, any user put in that group would then obtain the privileges related to the edited right.
Note that this security issue is normally mitigated by the fact that XWiki.WebHome (and XWiki space in general) should be protected by default for edit rights.
Patches
The problem has been patched in XWiki 13.10.4 and 14.2RC1 to not consider anymore empty values in XWikiRights.
Workarounds
It's possible to workaround the problem by setting appropriate rights on XWiki.WebHome page to prevent users to edit it.
References
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
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore | ≥ 11.3.7&&< 13.10.4 | 13.10.4org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore:13.10.4 |
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore | ≥ 14.0-rc-1&&< 14.2-rc-1 | 14.2-rc-1org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore:14.2-rc-1 |
Research use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore to 13.10.4 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2022-31166 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How O3 protects you
O3 Security's impact-aware SCA analyses which vulnerable code paths your application actually calls, so a match like CVE-2022-31166 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2022-31166. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2022-31166 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2022-31166 across Maven dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.