GHSA-h7cw-44vp-jq7h is a high-severity (CVSS 8.8) CWE-863 vulnerability in org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-help-ui. 1 public exploit reference exists, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-help-ui — see the affected versions and patch details below.
XWiki Platform vulnerable to privilege escalation (PR) from account through TipsPanel
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 GHSA-h7cw-44vp-jq7h.
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
GHSA-h7cw-44vp-jq7h 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 377,166 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.platform:xwiki-platform-help-ui☕org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-help-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 to execute any wiki content with the right of the TipsPanel author by creating a tip UI extension.
To reproduce:
- Add an object of type UIExtensionClass
- Set "Extension Point ID" to org.xwiki.platform.help.tipsPanel
- Set "Extension ID" to org.xwiki.platform.user.test (needs to be unique but otherwise doesn't matter)
- Set "Extension Parameters" to
tip={{async async="true" cached="false" context="doc.reference"}}{{groovy}}println("Hello " + "from groovy!"){{/groovy}}{{/async}} - Set "Extension Scope" to "Current User".
- Click "Save & View"
- Open the "Help.TipsPanel" document at <xwiki-host>/xwiki/bin/view/Help/TipsPanel where <xwiki-host> is the URL of your XWiki installation and press refresh repeatedly.
The groovy macro is executed, after the fix you get an error instead.
Patches
This has been patched in XWiki 15.1-rc-1 and 14.10.5.
Workarounds
There are no known workarounds for it.
References
- https://jira.xwiki.org/browse/XWIKI-20281
- https://github.com/xwiki/xwiki-platform/commit/98208c5bb1e8cdf3ff1ac35d8b3d1cb3c28b3263#diff-4e3467d2ef3871a68b2f910e67cf84531751b32e0126321be83c0f1ed5d90b29L176-R178
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-help-ui | ≥ 8.1-milestone-1&&< 14.10.5 | 14.10.5org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-help-ui:14.10.5 |
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-help-ui | ≥ 15.0-rc-1&&< 15.1-rc-1 | 15.1-rc-1org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-help-ui:15.1-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.platform:xwiki-platform-help-ui, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-help-ui to 14.10.5 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-h7cw-44vp-jq7h 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 GHSA-h7cw-44vp-jq7h can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to GHSA-h7cw-44vp-jq7h. 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-h7cw-44vp-jq7h in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds GHSA-h7cw-44vp-jq7h across Maven dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.