CVE-2007-4898 in XWiki
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in the Multiwiki plugin in XWiki before 1.1 Enterprise RC2 allows remote authenticated users, with administrative access to one wiki in a multiwiki environment, to obtain sensitive information via unknown attack vectors. NOTE: Some of these details are obtained from third party information.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/08/2018
The vulnerability described in CVE-2007-4898 affects the Multiwiki plugin within the XWiki platform prior to version 1.1 Enterprise RC2, representing a significant security weakness in multi-tenant wiki environments. This issue specifically targets installations where multiple wikis operate within a single XWiki instance, creating a complex administrative landscape where access controls must be meticulously maintained across separate wiki domains. The vulnerability's classification as unspecified indicates that the precise technical mechanism enabling the information disclosure remains partially obscured, though the impact on security operations is clear. The fact that this vulnerability requires administrative access to one wiki within the multiwiki environment suggests that privilege escalation or lateral movement attacks may be possible, making it particularly concerning for organizations relying on XWiki's multiwiki capabilities for content separation and access control.
The technical flaw manifests through unknown attack vectors that enable authenticated users with administrative privileges in one wiki to extract sensitive information from other wikis within the same multiwiki installation. This represents a failure in access isolation mechanisms that should prevent administrative users from one wiki from accessing or manipulating data in another wiki instance. The vulnerability's nature suggests a potential lack of proper boundary enforcement between wiki instances, where administrative privileges in one domain inadvertently extend to information disclosure capabilities across the entire multiwiki environment. This type of cross-contamination typically falls under the category of insufficient access control or privilege escalation vulnerabilities, which are commonly classified under CWE-284 for improper access control. The attack vector implies that the Multiwiki plugin does not properly enforce wiki instance boundaries when handling administrative requests, allowing for unauthorized information retrieval that could include user credentials, configuration data, or confidential content from other wiki instances.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it fundamentally undermines the security model of multiwiki deployments and creates potential for more severe attacks within the affected environment. Organizations utilizing XWiki's multiwiki functionality for hosting separate departments, projects, or client environments face significant risks when this vulnerability exists, as administrative users from one wiki could potentially access sensitive information from other wikis. This compromise could lead to data breaches, intellectual property theft, or unauthorized access to confidential organizational information. The vulnerability's requirement for administrative access in one wiki suggests that insider threats or compromised administrative accounts could be particularly dangerous, as attackers would only need to gain administrative privileges in a single wiki to potentially access all other wikis within the environment. From an operational security standpoint, this vulnerability could compromise the integrity of multiwiki deployments and force organizations to reconsider their security architecture, potentially leading to costly reconfigurations or migration efforts.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2007-4898 should prioritize immediate patching of affected XWiki installations to version 1.1 Enterprise RC2 or later, as this represents the most direct solution to address the underlying access control flaw. Organizations should also implement additional monitoring and logging around administrative activities within multiwiki environments to detect potential exploitation attempts. Network segmentation and additional access controls should be considered as defensive measures, particularly in environments where the multiwiki functionality is essential but cannot be immediately patched. Security teams should conduct comprehensive audits of multiwiki configurations to ensure that proper isolation mechanisms are in place and that administrative access is properly restricted to individual wiki instances. The vulnerability's nature also suggests that organizations should review their overall security posture for wiki-based systems, particularly focusing on how administrative privileges are managed and isolated across different content domains. This incident highlights the importance of proper input validation and access control implementation in multi-tenant applications, aligning with ATT&CK techniques related to privilege escalation and credential access, where the compromised administrative account could potentially leverage the vulnerability to access additional credentials or information from other wiki instances.