GHSA-vxwr-wpjv-qjq7
CRITICALXWiki Platform: Privilege escalation (PR) from user registration through PDFClass
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.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore☕org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore☕org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcoreReal-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
Remote code execution is possible via PDF export templates.
To reproduce on an installation, register a new user account with username PDFClass if XWiki.PDFClass does not exist.
On XWiki.PDFClass, use the class editor to add a "style" property of type "TextArea" and content type "Plain Text".
Then, add an object of class PDFClass and set the "style" attribute to $services.logging.getLogger('PDFClass').error("I got programming: $services.security.authorization.hasAccess('programming')").
Finally, go to <host>/xwiki/bin/export/Main/WebHome?format=pdf&pdftemplate=XWiki.PDFClass. If the logs contain "ERROR PDFClass - I got programming: true", the instance is vulnerable.
Patches
This vulnerability has been patched in XWiki 14.10.20, 15.5.4 and 15.10-rc-1.
Workarounds
If PDF templates are not typically used on the instance, an administrator can create the document XWiki.PDFClass and block its edition, after making sure that it does not contain a style attribute.
Otherwise, the instance needs to be updated.
References
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore | ≥ 3.0.1&&< 14.10.20 | 14.10.20 |
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore | ≥ 15.0-rc-1&&< 15.5.4 | 15.5.4 |
| ☕Maven | org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore | ≥ 15.6-rc-1&&< 15.10-rc-1 | 15.10-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-oldcore. 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.platform:xwiki-platform-oldcore to 14.10.20 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-vxwr-wpjv-qjq7 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-vxwr-wpjv-qjq7 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-vxwr-wpjv-qjq7. 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-vxwr-wpjv-qjq7 in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-vxwr-wpjv-qjq7 across Maven dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.