CVE-2024-38369
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability in XWiki Platform allows privilege escalation through macro execution context manipulation. When using the include macro, content executes with the includer's permissions rather than the author's, enabling attackers to impersonate higher-privileged users. All XWiki instances using vulnerable versions are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- XWiki Platform
📦 What is this software?
Xwiki by Xwiki
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise where any authenticated user can execute arbitrary code with administrative privileges, leading to data theft, system takeover, or lateral movement.
Likely Case
Privilege escalation allowing regular users to perform administrative actions, modify critical content, or access restricted data.
If Mitigated
Limited impact if proper access controls restrict who can edit documents and use include macros.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires authenticated access but is straightforward once authenticated. The advisory includes technical details that facilitate exploitation.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: XWiki 15.0 RC1 and later
Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/xwiki/xwiki-platform/security/advisories/GHSA-qcj3-wpgm-qpxh
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Backup your XWiki instance. 2. Upgrade to XWiki 15.0 RC1 or later. 3. Restart the XWiki application server. 4. Verify the upgrade completed successfully.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable include macro globally
allRemove or restrict the include macro to prevent exploitation
Edit xwiki.cfg or xwiki.properties to disable the include macro
Restrict document editing permissions
allLimit which users can edit documents to reduce attack surface
Configure XWiki rights to restrict edit permissions to trusted users only
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict access controls to limit document editing to minimal trusted users
- Monitor and audit all include macro usage and document modifications
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check XWiki version. If version is below 15.0 RC1, the system is vulnerable if include macro is enabled.Check Version:
Check XWiki administration panel or view xwiki.cfg version propertyVerify Fix Applied:
Verify XWiki version is 15.0 RC1 or later and test include macro functionality with different user permissions.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual include macro usage patterns
- Document edits followed by include executions from different users
- Permission escalation attempts in audit logs
Network Indicators:
- Multiple document edit requests from single user followed by include requests
SIEM Query:
source="xwiki.log" AND ("include reference" OR "macro execution") AND user_change