# CVE-2017-1000148: Deserialization in n/a

> Attacker can execute arbitrary PHP code by importing a malicious skin XML file due to unsafe deserialization in Mahara.

- **Severity:** High 8.8 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 3 Nov 2017
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-r8hv-r9hq-hvgj

## What is CVE-2017-1000148?

CVE-2017-1000148 is a high-severity unsafe deserialization vulnerability in Mahara Mahara, published on 3 Nov 2017. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Mahara 15.04 before 15.04.8 and 15.10 before 15.10.4 and 16.04 before 16.04.2 are vulnerable to PHP code execution as Mahara would pass portions of the XML through the PHP "unserialize()" function when importing a skin from an XML file.

Weakness: CWE-502 (Deserialization of Untrusted Data)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2017-1000148?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Mahara Mahara.

## How do I fix CVE-2017-1000148?

No fix has been published for CVE-2017-1000148 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2017-1000148 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-1000148 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Mahara Mahara

- [CVE-2022-45134](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-45134/): Deserialization in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2022-44544](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-44544/): Command injection in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2021-40849](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-40849/): Auth bypass in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2017-1000152](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-1000152/): Auth bypass in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2017-1000153](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-1000153/): Auth bypass in n/a (critical 9.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2017-1000148 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2017-1000148 is a high-severity unsafe deserialization vulnerability in Mahara Mahara, published on 3 Nov 2017. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-1000148 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Mahara Mahara. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-1000148/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-1000148/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-1000148
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-1000148
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2017-1000148

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-1000148/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.