GHSA-35j5-m29r-xfq5
HIGHXWiki Rendering's footnote macro vulnerable to privilege escalation via the footnote macro
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.
Blast Radius
org.xwiki.rendering:xwiki-rendering-macro-footnotes☕org.xwiki.rendering:xwiki-rendering-macro-footnotes☕org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-core-rendering-macro-footnotesReal-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
The footnote macro executed its content in a potentially different context than the one in which it was defined. In particular in combination with the include macro, this allows privilege escalation from a simple user account in XWiki to programming rights and thus remote code execution, impacting the confidentiality, integrity and availability of the whole XWiki installation.
To reproduce, perform the following steps:
- Edit your user profile with the object editor and add an object of type DocumentSheetBinding with value XWiki.ClassSheet
- Edit your user profile with the wiki editor and add the syntax
{{footnote}}{{groovy}}println("Hello " + "from groovy!"){{/groovy}}{{/footnote}}
When the text "Hello from groovy!" is displayed at the bottom of the document, the installation is vulnerable. Instead, an error should be displayed.
Patches
This vulnerability has been patched in XWiki 14.10.6 and 15.1-rc-1.
Workarounds
There is no workaround apart from upgrading to a fixed version of the footnote macro.
References
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.rendering:xwiki-rendering-macro-footnotes | all versions | 14.10.6 |
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.rendering:xwiki-rendering-macro-footnotes | ≥ 15.0-rc-1&&< 15.1-rc-1 | 15.1-rc-1 |
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-core-rendering-macro-footnotes | all versions | 14.10.6 |
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.rendering:xwiki-rendering-macro-footnotes. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update org.xwiki.rendering:xwiki-rendering-macro-footnotes to 14.10.6 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-35j5-m29r-xfq5 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 pinpoints whether GHSA-35j5-m29r-xfq5 is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to GHSA-35j5-m29r-xfq5. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-35j5-m29r-xfq5 in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-35j5-m29r-xfq5 across Maven dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.