How severe is CVE-2023-25621?

CVE-2023-25621 has a CVSS score of 6.5/10, rated MEDIUM. Review your exposure and patch according to your risk tolerance.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2023-25621?

CVE-2023-25621 affects the following packages: org.apache.sling:org.apache.sling.i18n (Maven). Ecosystems affected: Maven.

How do I fix CVE-2023-25621?

Update org.apache.sling:org.apache.sling.i18n to 2.6.2 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2023-25621 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect CVE-2023-25621 in my Maven dependencies?

Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.apache.sling:org.apache.sling.i18n, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.

How do I mitigate CVE-2023-25621 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

Close the privilege gap rather than the entry point: audit which accounts, roles and service identities can reach the affected operation, drop the component to the least privilege it actually needs, and review file and directory permissions created by earlier installs — a default left in place is what makes this reachable.

Is CVE-2023-25621 actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for CVE-2023-25621 yet. This does not mean the vulnerability cannot be exploited — absence of public exploits does not imply safety. Apply the recommended fix and use O3 Security to monitor your exposure.

What is the EPSS score for CVE-2023-25621?

CVE-2023-25621 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 1.1%, placing it in the 67th percentile of all CVEs. EPSS is maintained by FIRST.org and estimates the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. This score indicates relatively lower exploitation probability, though the CVSS severity should still guide your patching priority.

When was CVE-2023-25621 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2023-25621 was published on February 23, 2023 and was last updated on October 28, 2026. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

☕

☕ Maven

Not in CISA KEV

MEDIUM severity

CVE-2023-25621 — org.apache.sling.i18n

MEDIUMFix: apache/sling-org-apache-sling-i18n#9

CVE-2023-25621 is a medium-severity (CVSS 6.5) vulnerability in org.apache.sling:org.apache.sling.i18n. A fix is available for org.apache.sling:org.apache.sling.i18n — see the affected versions and patch details below.

Apache Sling does not allow to handle i18n content in a secure way

Also known asGHSA-mrpv-5pmr-p92h

Published

Feb 23, 2023

Updated

Oct 28, 2026

Affected

1 pkg

Patched

1 / 1

Exploits

None indexed

Exploitation data as of Nov 10, 2026 · OSV.dev, NVD, FIRST.org (EPSS)

Exploitation Status

No confirmed exploitation observed yet

A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.

Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2023-25621.

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

1.1%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Lower Risk0.00%

Lower risk than most CVEs67th percentile — riskier than 67% of all scored CVEsHighest risk

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.

How urgent is this, really

Where this sits among everything scored

Real-World Exposure

1 pkg affected

☕org.apache.sling:org.apache.sling.i18n

Real-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

Privilege Escalation vulnerability in Apache Software Foundation Apache Sling. Any content author is able to create i18n dictionaries in the repository in a location the author has write access to. As these translations are used across the whole product, it allows an author to change any text or dialog in the product. For example an attacker might fool someone by changing the text on a delete button to "Info". This issue affects the i18n module of Apache Sling up to version 2.5.18. Version 2.6.2 and higher limit by default i18m dictionaries to certain paths in the repository (/libs and /apps).

Users of the module are advised to update to version 2.6.2 or higher, check the configuration for resource loading and then adjust the access permissions for the configured path accordingly.

Affected Packages

1 total 1 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
☕Maven	`org.apache.sling:org.apache.sling.i18n`	all versions	2.6.2`org.apache.sling:org.apache.sling.i18n:2.6.2`

Affected Products

1 product · 1 configurations

Application

sling i18napache

< 2.6.2

range

Detection & mitigation playbook

Open-source dependency

Detect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.apache.sling:org.apache.sling.i18n, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.apache.sling:org.apache.sling.i18n to 2.6.2 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2023-25621 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Close the privilege gap rather than the entry point: audit which accounts, roles and service identities can reach the affected operation, drop the component to the least privilege it actually needs, and review file and directory permissions created by earlier installs — a default left in place is what makes this reachable.

Frequently Asked Questions

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

Is CVE-2023-25621 in your dependencies?

Find it across Maven, including transitive dependencies.

Scan my dependencies How O3 SCA works