CVE-2023-29209 is a critical-severity (CVSS 9.9) CWE-95 vulnerability in org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-legacy-notification-activitymacro. 2 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-legacy-notification-activitymacro — see the affected versions and patch details below.
org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-legacy-notification-activitymacro Eval Injection vulnerability
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-2023-29209.
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-2023-29209 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 377,636 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-legacy-notification-activitymacro☕org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-legacy-notification-activitymacro☕org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-legacy-notification-activitymacroReal-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
Any user with view rights on commonly accessible documents including the legacy notification activity macro 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 macro parameters of the legacy notification activity macro. This macro is installed by default in XWiki.
A proof of concept exploit is
{{activity wikis="~" /~}~} {{async async=~"true~" cached=~"false~" context=~"doc.reference~"~}~}{{groovy~}~}println(~"Hello from Groovy!~"){{/groovy~}~}"/}}
If the output of this macro is
The [notifications] macro is a standalone macro and it cannot be used inline. Click on this message for details.
Hello from Groovy!" displayMinorEvents="false" displayRSSLink="false" /}}
or similar, the XWiki installation is vulnerable. The vulnerability can be exploited via every wiki page that is editable including the user's profile, but also with just view rights using the HTMLConverter that is part of the CKEditor integration which is bundled with XWiki.
Patches
The vulnerability has been patched in XWiki 13.10.11, 14.4.7 and 14.10.
Workarounds
The issue can be fixed by replacing the code of the legacy notification activity macro by the patched version. Alternatively, if the macro isn't used, the document XWiki.Notifications.Code.Legacy.ActivityMacro can also be completely deleted.
References
- https://github.com/xwiki/xwiki-platform/commit/94392490884635c028199275db059a4f471e57bc
- https://jira.xwiki.org/browse/XWIKI-20258
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-legacy-notification-activitymacro | ≥ 10.9&&< 13.10.11 | 13.10.11org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-legacy-notification-activitymacro:13.10.11 |
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-legacy-notification-activitymacro | ≥ 14.0-rc-1&&< 14.4.7 | 14.4.7org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-legacy-notification-activitymacro:14.4.7 |
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-legacy-notification-activitymacro | ≥ 14.5&&< 14.10 | 14.10org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-legacy-notification-activitymacro:14.10 |
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-legacy-notification-activitymacro, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-legacy-notification-activitymacro to 13.10.11 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2023-29209 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-2023-29209 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2023-29209. 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-2023-29209 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2023-29209 across Maven dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.