CVE-2022-2131 in Community Edition
Summary
by MITRE • 07/25/2022
OpenKM Community Edition in its 6.3.10 version and before was using XMLReader parser in XMLTextExtractor.java file without the required security flags, allowing an attacker to perform a XML external entity injection attack.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/27/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2022-2131 affects OpenKM Community Edition versions 6.3.10 and earlier, representing a critical security flaw in the document extraction processing component. This issue stems from the improper configuration of the XMLReader parser within the XMLTextExtractor.java file, which fails to implement essential security protections against external entity injection attacks. The flaw exists in the application's text extraction mechanism that processes XML documents, creating a pathway for malicious actors to exploit the system through crafted XML input.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the XMLReader parser being instantiated without proper security configurations that would prevent external entity resolution. Specifically, the parser lacks the necessary flags to disable external entity processing, allowing attackers to craft malicious XML documents containing external entity references that can be resolved by the vulnerable application. This configuration flaw directly maps to CWE-611, which describes improper restriction of XML external entity reference, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1213.002 for data from information repositories. The vulnerability enables attackers to perform various malicious activities including sensitive data exfiltration, server-side request forgery attacks, and potentially remote code execution depending on the underlying system configuration.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is significant as it allows unauthenticated attackers to exploit the XML parsing functionality without requiring any valid credentials or privileged access. An attacker could leverage this weakness to access internal system resources, extract confidential information from the application's database or file system, and potentially establish persistence within the target environment. The vulnerability affects the core document processing capabilities of OpenKM, which could lead to widespread data compromise across all documents processed through the vulnerable system. Additionally, the attack vector is particularly dangerous because it can be exploited through normal document upload and processing workflows, making detection more challenging for security monitoring systems.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2022-2131 should prioritize immediate patching of the OpenKM Community Edition to version 6.3.11 or later, which contains the necessary security fixes. Organizations should also implement proper XML parser configuration by ensuring that external entity processing is disabled through appropriate security flags such as setting the feature "http://apache.org/xml/features/disallow-doctype-decl" to true. Network-based mitigations including firewall rules that restrict access to the vulnerable XML processing endpoints and intrusion detection system signatures targeting this specific vulnerability pattern should be deployed. Security monitoring should focus on detecting unusual XML processing activities and unauthorized access attempts to document management systems. Regular security assessments of third-party components and libraries should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities in other XML processing implementations within the organization's technology stack, following the principle of least privilege for XML processing services and implementing proper input validation for all XML content submitted to the system.