CVE-2023-22515
Atlassian Confluence Data Center and Server Broken Access Control Vulnerability
Atlassian Confluence Data Center and Server
Atlassian has been made aware of an issue reported by a handful of customers where external attackers may have exploited a previously unknown vulnerability in publicly accessible Confluence Data Center and Server instances to create unauthorized Confluence administrator accounts and access Confluence instances. Atlassian Cloud sites are not affected by this vulnerability. If your Confluence site is accessed via an atlassian.net domain, it is hosted by Atlassian and is not vulnerable to this issue.
Ransomware groups exploiting CVE-2023-22515
The group emerged in mid-February 2024 and has already listed several organizations as alleged victims of their attacks, resulting from extortion through encryption and data leaks. The announcement of the sale of the new Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) by Ranso
Exploitation is attributed to these groups across their recorded activity. It does not follow that every organisation they listed was reached through CVE-2023-22515 — the source data does not record an entry point per incident.
Exploitation status
CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities
Listed by CISA on 5 October 2023. US federal agencies were required to remediate it by 13 October 2023. CISA records this vulnerability as known to be used in ransomware campaigns.
EPSS — exploitation probability
FIRST puts the probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days at 99.2%, which is higher than 99.9% of all scored vulnerabilities. EPSS is a forecast of activity, not a measure of severity, and it is rescored daily.
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Recent listings by these groups
Disclosures from the groups above, newest first.
Frequently asked questions
Is CVE-2023-22515 being exploited by ransomware groups?
Yes. CVE-2023-22515 is recorded as exploited by Ransomhub. Between them these groups account for 842 victim disclosures in this database. CISA also records this vulnerability as used in ransomware campaigns.
What does CVE-2023-22515 affect?
CVE-2023-22515 affects Atlassian Confluence Data Center and Server. Atlassian has been made aware of an issue reported by a handful of customers where external attackers may have exploited a previously unknown vulnerability in publicly accessible Confluence Data Center and Server instances to create unauthorized Confluence administrator accounts and access Confluence instances. Atlassian Cloud sites are not affected by this vulnerability. If your Confluence site is accessed via an atlassian.net domain, it is hosted by Atlassian and is not vulnerable to this issue.
How severe is CVE-2023-22515?
CVE-2023-22515 is rated CRITICAL with a CVSS base score of 9.8. EPSS puts the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days at 99.2%, higher than 99.9% of all scored vulnerabilities. It is listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, with a federal remediation deadline of 13 October 2023.
How should organisations respond to CVE-2023-22515?
Apply the vendor patch for Atlassian Confluence Data Center and Server as the first priority, and treat any internet-facing instance as the most urgent. Because this vulnerability is associated with ransomware activity, also review whether the affected systems were reachable before patching, rather than assuming that patching alone closes the incident.