CVE-2023-52085 is a low-severity (CVSS 3.3) Path Traversal vulnerability in winter/wn-backend-module. EPSS puts its 30-day exploitation probability at 30.2% (98th percentile). A fix is available for winter/wn-backend-module — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Winter CMS Local File Inclusion through Server Side Template Injection
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-2023-52085 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 376,715 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the 10–50% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
winter/wn-backend-moduleReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Packagist packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Winter is a free, open-source content management system. Users with access to backend forms that include a ColorPicker FormWidget can provide a value that would then be included without further processing in the compilation of custom stylesheets via LESS. This had the potential to lead to a Local File Inclusion vulnerability. This issue has been patched in v1.2.4.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐘Packagist | winter/wn-backend-module | all versions | 1.2.4composer require winter/wn-backend-module:^1.2.4 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for winter/wn-backend-module, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update winter/wn-backend-module to 1.2.4 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2023-52085 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-2023-52085 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2023-52085. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
How to detect CVE-2023-52085
A community-maintained Nuclei template exists for this CVE. You can scan for it directly:
nuclei -id cve-2023-52085 -u https://target- Template
- Winter CMS Local File Inclusion - (LFI)
- Severity
- medium
- Impact
- Authenticated attackers can include local files via LESS compilation, potentially exposing sensitive file contents and system paths.
- Remediation
- Upgrade Winter CMS to version 1.2.4 or later.
Template by ProjectDiscovery nuclei-templates (sanineng), MIT licensed. View the full template. Scan only systems you are authorised to test.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2023-52085 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2023-52085 across Packagist dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.