CVE-2025-6926
📋 TL;DR
An improper authentication vulnerability in MediaWiki's CentralAuth extension allows attackers to bypass authentication mechanisms. This affects MediaWiki installations using CentralAuth extension versions 1.39.X before 1.39.13, 1.42.X before 1.42.7, and 1.43.X before 1.43.2.
💻 Affected Systems
- MediaWiki CentralAuth Extension
⚠️ Manual Verification Required
This CVE does not have specific version information in our database, so automatic vulnerability detection cannot determine if your system is affected.
Why? The CVE database entry doesn't specify which versions are vulnerable (no version ranges provided by the vendor/NVD).
🔒 Custom verification scripts are available for registered users. Sign up free to download automated test scripts.
- Review the CVE details at NVD
- Check vendor security advisories for your specific version
- Test if the vulnerability is exploitable in your environment
- Consider updating to the latest version as a precaution
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Attackers gain unauthorized administrative access to MediaWiki instances, potentially compromising sensitive data, modifying content, or taking full control of the wiki.
Likely Case
Unauthorized users gain access to restricted areas or perform actions requiring authentication, leading to data exposure or content manipulation.
If Mitigated
With proper network segmentation and access controls, impact is limited to the affected MediaWiki instance only.
🎯 Exploit Status
CWE-287 indicates improper authentication, suggesting relatively straightforward exploitation once details are known.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 1.39.13, 1.42.7, or 1.43.2
Vendor Advisory: https://phabricator.wikimedia.org/T389010
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Update MediaWiki to version 1.39.13, 1.42.7, or 1.43.2 depending on your branch. 2. Update CentralAuth extension if installed separately. 3. Clear caches if applicable.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable CentralAuth Extension
allTemporarily disable the CentralAuth extension if not essential for operations.
Edit LocalSettings.php and comment out or remove 'wfLoadExtension( 'CentralAuth' );'
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict network access controls to limit MediaWiki access to trusted IPs only.
- Enable detailed authentication logging and monitor for suspicious login attempts.
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check MediaWiki version and CentralAuth extension version in LocalSettings.php and extension metadata.Check Version:
Check MediaWiki version via Special:Version page or grep 'wgVersion' in LocalSettings.phpVerify Fix Applied:
Confirm MediaWiki version is 1.39.13, 1.42.7, or 1.43.2 or higher, and CentralAuth is updated.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unexpected successful authentication from unverified sources
- Authentication bypass attempts in access logs
Network Indicators:
- Unusual authentication requests to MediaWiki endpoints
SIEM Query:
source="mediawiki" AND (event="authentication" OR event="login") AND result="success" AND user="unknown"