CVE-2024-31996 is a critical-severity (CVSS 10) CWE-95 vulnerability in org.xwiki.commons:xwiki-commons-velocity. 2 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for org.xwiki.commons:xwiki-commons-velocity — see the affected versions and patch details below.
XWiki Commons missing escaping of `{` in Velocity escapetool allows remote code execution
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.
- CISA assesses this as automatable — exploitation doesn’t require manual, per-target effort, which raises the odds of mass scanning and opportunistic attacks.
- 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-2024-31996.
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-2024-31996 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 377,166 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.commons:xwiki-commons-velocity☕org.xwiki.commons:xwiki-commons-velocity☕org.xwiki.commons:xwiki-commons-velocityReal-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
XWiki Platform is a generic wiki platform. Starting in version 3.0.1 and prior to versions 4.10.19, 15.5.4, and 15.10-rc-1, the HTML escaping of escaping tool that is used in XWiki doesn't escape {, which, when used in certain places, allows XWiki syntax injection and thereby remote code execution. The vulnerability has been fixed in XWiki 14.10.19, 15.5.5, and 15.9 RC1. Apart from upgrading, there is no generic workaround. However, replacing $escapetool.html by $escapetool.xml in XWiki documents fixes the vulnerability. In a standard XWiki installation, the maintainers are only aware of the document Panels.PanelLayoutUpdate that exposes this vulnerability, patching this document is thus a workaround. Any extension could expose this vulnerability and might thus require patching, too.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.commons:xwiki-commons-velocity | ≥ 3.0.1&&< 14.10.19 | 14.10.19org.xwiki.commons:xwiki-commons-velocity:14.10.19 |
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.commons:xwiki-commons-velocity | ≥ 15.0-rc-1&&< 15.5.4 | 15.5.4org.xwiki.commons:xwiki-commons-velocity:15.5.4 |
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.commons:xwiki-commons-velocity | ≥ 15.6-rc-1&&< 15.9-rc-1 | 15.9-rc-1org.xwiki.commons:xwiki-commons-velocity:15.9-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.commons:xwiki-commons-velocity, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.xwiki.commons:xwiki-commons-velocity to 14.10.19 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2024-31996 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-2024-31996 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2024-31996. 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-2024-31996 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2024-31996 across Maven dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.