CVE-2023-35162: Xwiki platform flamingo skin resources Cross-Site Scripting Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-q9hg-9qj2-mxf9
CVSS 9.6
CWE-79
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2023-35162 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.6) cross-site scripting vulnerability (CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')) affecting Xwiki platform flamingo skin resources libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves xwiki platform vulnerable to cross-site scripting via xcontinue parameter in previewactions template. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 14.10.5, 15.1-rc-1.

CVE-2023-35162 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2023-35162
GHSA Identifier GHSA-q9hg-9qj2-mxf9
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.6
CWE Classification CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')
Affected Product Xwiki platform flamingo skin resources
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 9.6

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction Required (UI:R)
Scope Changed (S:C)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2023-35162

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Xwiki platform flamingo skin resources dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-flamingo-skin-resources fixed: 14.10.5
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.xwiki.platform</groupId>
    <artifactId>xwiki-platform-flamingo-skin-resources</artifactId>
    <version>14.10.5</version>
</dependency>
org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-flamingo-skin-resources fixed: 15.1-rc-1
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.xwiki.platform</groupId>
    <artifactId>xwiki-platform-flamingo-skin-resources</artifactId>
    <version>15.1-rc-1</version>
</dependency>
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.xwiki.platform

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2023-35162, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.xwiki.platform

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Xwiki platform flamingo skin resources in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 14.10.5), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.xwiki.platform command inspects the resolved dependency graph declared in your project's POM files; it does not perform automated security scanning or inspect runtime dynamic classpaths. Always verify runtime container classpaths and shaded JARs.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting'), where the product does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes user-controllable input before it is placed in output that is used as a web page that is served to other users. In Xwiki platform flamingo skin resources, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

### Impact Users are able to forge an URL with a payload allowing to inject Javascript in the page (XSS). It's possible to exploit the previewactions template to perform a XSS, e.g. by using URL such as: > <hostname>/xwiki/bin/get/FlamingoThemes/Cerulean?xpage=xpart&vm=previewactions.vm&xcontinue=javascript:alert(document.domain) This vulnerability exists since XWiki 6.1-rc-1. ### Patches The vulnerability has been patched in XWiki 14.10.5 and 15.1-rc-1. ### Workarounds It's possible to workaround the vulnerability by editing the template previewactions.vm to perform checks on it, but note that the appropriate fix involves new APIs that have been recently introduced in XWiki. See the referenced jira tickets. ### References * Jira ticket about the vulnerability: https://jira.xwiki.org/browse/XWIKI-20342 * Introduction of the macro used for fixing this type of vulnerability: https://jira.xwiki.org/browse/XWIKI-20583 * Commit containing the actual fix in the template: https://github.com/xwiki/xwiki-platform/commit/9f01166b1a8ee9639666099eb5040302df067e4d ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Open an issue in [Jira XWiki.org](https://jira.xwiki.org/) * Email us at [Security Mailing List](mailto:security@xwiki.org) ### Attribution This vulnerability has been reported by René de Sain @renniepak.

CVE-2023-35162 Affected Xwiki platform flamingo skin resources Versions

2 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
14.10.515.1-rc-1
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-flamingo-skin-resources
Maven
≥ 6.1-rc-1
< 14.10.5
14.10.5
org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-flamingo-skin-resources
Maven
≥ 15.0-rc-1
< 15.1-rc-1
15.1-rc-1

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2023-35162?
CVE-2023-35162 is a security vulnerability in Xwiki platform flamingo skin resources involving XWiki Platform vulnerable to cross-site scripting via xcontinue parameter in previewactions template under CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting').
Which Xwiki platform flamingo skin resources versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 14.10.5, 15.1-rc-1 across affected packages: org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-flamingo-skin-resources.
What version fixes CVE-2023-35162?
Upgrading to 14.10.5, 15.1-rc-1 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is xwiki-platform-flamingo-skin-resources affected?
Yes, org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-flamingo-skin-resources is affected in releases prior to 14.10.5, 15.1-rc-1. Upgrade your dependency to 14.10.5, 15.1-rc-1 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2023-35162?
CVE-2023-35162 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.6 (CRITICAL) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2023-35162?
CVE-2023-35162 is classified under CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') (The product does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes user-controllable input before it is placed in output that is used as a web page that is served to other users.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2023-35162?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.xwiki.platform'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-q9hg-9qj2-mxf9",
  "modified" : "2023-06-30T20:28:38Z",
  "published" : "2023-06-20T17:42:16Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2023-35162" ],
  "summary" : "XWiki Platform vulnerable to cross-site scripting via xcontinue parameter in previewactions template",
  "details" : "### Impact\nUsers are able to forge an URL with a payload allowing to inject Javascript in the page (XSS).\nIt's possible to exploit the previewactions template to perform a XSS, e.g. by using URL such as: \n> <hostname>/xwiki/bin/get/FlamingoThemes/Cerulean?xpage=xpart&vm=previewactions.vm&xcontinue=javascript:alert(document.domain)\n\nThis vulnerability exists since XWiki 6.1-rc-1. \n\n### Patches\n\nThe vulnerability has been patched in XWiki 14.10.5 and 15.1-rc-1.\n\n### Workarounds\n\nIt's possible to workaround the vulnerability by editing the template previewactions.vm to perform checks on it, but note that the appropriate fix involves new APIs that have been recently introduced in XWiki. See the referenced jira tickets. \n\n### References\n\n  * Jira ticket about the vulnerability: https://jira.xwiki.org/browse/XWIKI-20342\n  * Introduction of the macro used for fixing this type of vulnerability: https://jira.xwiki.org/browse/XWIKI-20583\n  * Commit containing the actual fix in the template: https://github.com/xwiki/xwiki-platform/commit/9f01166b1a8ee9639666099eb5040302df067e4d\n\n### For more information\n\nIf you have any questions or comments about this advisory:\n* Open an issue in [Jira XWiki.org](https://jira.xwiki.org/)\n* Email us at [Security Mailing List](mailto:security@xwiki.org)\n\n### Attribution\n\nThis vulnerability has been reported by René de Sain @renniepak.\n",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-flamingo-skin-resources"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "6.1-rc-1"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "14.10.5"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "org.xwiki.platform:xwiki-platform-flamingo-skin-resources"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "15.0-rc-1"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "15.1-rc-1"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/xwiki/xwiki-platform/security/advisories/GHSA-q9hg-9qj2-mxf9"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-35162"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/xwiki/xwiki-platform/commit/9f01166b1a8ee9639666099eb5040302df067e4d"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/xwiki/xwiki-platform"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://jira.xwiki.org/browse/XWIKI-20342"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://jira.xwiki.org/browse/XWIKI-20583"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-79" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2023-06-20T17:42:16Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2023-06-23T19:15:09Z"
  }
}