CVE-2025-30638 in Powies Uptime Robot Plugin
Summary
by MITRE • 06/06/2025
Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') vulnerability in PowieT Powie's Uptime Robot allows Stored XSS. This issue affects Powie's Uptime Robot: from n/a through 0.9.7.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/06/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2025-30638 represents a critical cross-site scripting weakness within PowieT Powie's Uptime Robot application, specifically targeting the web page generation process where input validation fails to properly sanitize user-supplied data. This stored XSS vulnerability occurs when malicious scripts are injected into the application's interface through improperly neutralized input fields, allowing attackers to execute arbitrary code within the context of other users' browsers. The flaw exists in versions ranging from the initial release through 0.9.7, indicating a persistent issue that has not been adequately addressed in the software's development lifecycle. The vulnerability stems from inadequate input sanitization mechanisms that fail to properly escape or encode special characters in user-provided content before rendering it within web pages, creating an exploitable vector for malicious actors to inject persistent script payloads.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability enables attackers to store malicious scripts within the application's database or configuration parameters, which then get executed whenever legitimate users view affected pages. This stored nature of the vulnerability means that the malicious payload persists even after the initial injection, making it particularly dangerous as it can affect multiple users over time without requiring repeated exploitation attempts. The flaw directly maps to CWE-79 which categorizes cross-site scripting vulnerabilities as a result of insufficient input validation and output encoding during web application development. When an attacker successfully injects malicious code through this vulnerability, they can potentially steal session cookies, perform unauthorized actions on behalf of users, redirect victims to malicious sites, or even execute more sophisticated attacks such as credential theft or privilege escalation within the application's context.
The operational impact of CVE-2025-30638 extends beyond simple script execution, as it fundamentally compromises the security posture of any organization relying on Uptime Robot for monitoring services. Given that uptime monitoring tools often contain sensitive operational data, including system status information, network configurations, and potentially access credentials, successful exploitation could provide attackers with unauthorized access to critical infrastructure monitoring capabilities. This vulnerability affects not only the availability of services but also the integrity and confidentiality of the monitoring environment, as attackers could manipulate monitoring data, hide malicious activities from detection, or gain insights into network infrastructure that could be used for further attacks. The vulnerability's presence in multiple versions suggests that organizations using Uptime Robot may be exposed to this risk for an extended period, potentially allowing attackers to establish persistent access to monitoring systems.
Organizations utilizing Uptime Robot should immediately implement mitigations including input validation and output encoding measures that align with established security best practices. The most effective immediate response involves implementing comprehensive input sanitization that removes or encodes potentially dangerous characters such as angle brackets, script tags, and other HTML entities that could be used to construct malicious payloads. Additionally, organizations should deploy Content Security Policy headers to limit the sources from which scripts can be executed within the application's context, and implement proper output encoding for all dynamic content that originates from user inputs. Regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities within the application's codebase, while developers should follow secure coding practices that align with OWASP Top Ten security guidelines and the ATT&CK framework's web application attack patterns. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of maintaining up-to-date software versions and implementing proper security patch management processes to prevent exploitation of known vulnerabilities in third-party applications.