CVE-2023-45138 — application-changerequest…
CRITICALFix: xwiki-contrib/application-changerequest@7565e72CVE-2023-45138 is a critical-severity (CVSS 10) Cross-site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in org.xwiki.contrib.changerequest:application-changerequest-ui. EPSS puts its 30-day exploitation probability at 71.2% (99th percentile). A fix is available for org.xwiki.contrib.changerequest:application-changerequest-ui — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Change Request Application vulnerable to XSS and remote code execution through change request title
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-2023-45138.
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-2023-45138 plotted by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). The shaded corner — EPSS 50%+ and CVSS 7.0+ — is where this CVE sits: patch-first territory.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 378,156 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the 50–90% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
org.xwiki.contrib.changerequest:application-changerequest-uiReal-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 for a user without any specific right to perform script injection and remote code execution just by inserting an appropriate title when creating a new Change Request. This vulnerability is particularly critical as Change Request aims at being created by user without any particular rights.
Patches
The vulnerability has been fixed in Change Request 1.9.2.
Workarounds
It's possible to workaround the issue without upgrading by editing the document ChangeRequest.Code.ChangeRequestSheet and by performing the same change as in the commit: https://github.com/xwiki-contrib/application-changerequest/commit/7565e720117f73102f5a276239eabfe85e15cff4.
References
- JIRA ticket: https://jira.xwiki.org/browse/CRAPP-298
- Commit of the fix: https://github.com/xwiki-contrib/application-changerequest/commit/7565e720117f73102f5a276239eabfe85e15cff4
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
Attribution
Thanks Michael Hamann for the report.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.contrib.changerequest:application-changerequest-ui | ≥ 0.11&&< 1.9.2 | 1.9.2org.xwiki.contrib.changerequest:application-changerequest-ui:1.9.2 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.xwiki.contrib.changerequest:application-changerequest-ui, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.xwiki.contrib.changerequest:application-changerequest-ui to 1.9.2 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2023-45138 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-2023-45138 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2023-45138. 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-2023-45138 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2023-45138 across Maven dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.