CVE-2026-25124
📋 TL;DR
OpenEMR versions before 8.0.0 contain an access control vulnerability that allows low-privileged users (like receptionists) to export the entire message list containing sensitive patient and user data. The flaw exists in the message_list.php report export functionality which lacks proper permission checks before executing sensitive database queries. This affects all OpenEMR installations running vulnerable versions.
💻 Affected Systems
- OpenEMR
📦 What is this software?
Openemr by Open Emr
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
An attacker with low-privileged credentials could exfiltrate all patient messages containing sensitive medical information, personal data, and user communications, leading to massive data breach and HIPAA violations.
Likely Case
Low-privileged users accidentally or intentionally access and export sensitive patient message data they shouldn't have access to, compromising patient privacy.
If Mitigated
With proper access controls, only authorized medical staff can access patient messages, maintaining confidentiality and compliance.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires low-privileged user credentials. The vulnerability is straightforward to exploit once authenticated.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 8.0.0
Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/openemr/openemr/security/advisories/GHSA-q7p5-rrwj-qmp2
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Backup your OpenEMR installation and database. 2. Download OpenEMR version 8.0.0 or later from the official repository. 3. Follow the OpenEMR upgrade documentation to update your installation. 4. Verify the message_list.php functionality now requires proper permissions.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable message export functionality
linuxTemporarily disable or restrict access to the message_list.php export feature until patching can be completed.
# Move or rename the vulnerable file
mv /path/to/openemr/interface/main/message_list.php /path/to/openemr/interface/main/message_list.php.disabled
Implement additional access controls
allAdd web server level access controls to restrict the message_list.php file to authorized users only.
# Example Apache .htaccess rule
<Files "message_list.php">
Require user admin doctor
</Files>
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict role-based access controls and audit all low-privileged user activities
- Monitor and alert on unusual data export activities from message_list.php
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if your OpenEMR version is below 8.0.0 by examining the version in the admin interface or checking the CHANGES file.Check Version:
grep -i 'version' /path/to/openemr/interface/login/login.php | head -1Verify Fix Applied:
After upgrading to 8.0.0, verify that low-privileged users cannot access the message export functionality and that proper permission checks are in place.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual access patterns to message_list.php from low-privileged users
- Large data exports from message functionality
Network Indicators:
- Unusually large HTTP responses from message_list.php endpoints
SIEM Query:
source="openemr_logs" AND (uri="*message_list.php*" AND user_role="receptionist" OR user_role="low_privilege")