# CVE-2018-20233: XML external entity in Universal Plugin Manager

> Remote attackers with admin privileges can read files, make network requests, and cause denial of service via XML External Entity vulnerability in plugin uploads.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.5 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 18 Jan 2019
- **Updated:** 16 Sep 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-5cjw-7jcv-34jx

## What is CVE-2018-20233?

CVE-2018-20233 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Atlassian Universal Plugin Manager, published on 18 Jan 2019. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

The Upload add-on resource in Atlassian Universal Plugin Manager before version 2.22.14 allows remote attackers who have system administrator privileges to read files, make network requests and perform a denial of service attack via an XML External Entity vulnerability in the parsing of atlassian plugin xml files in an uploaded JAR.

Weakness: CWE-611 (Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2018-20233?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Atlassian Universal Plugin Manager.

## How do I fix CVE-2018-20233?

No fix has been published for CVE-2018-20233 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2018-20233 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-20233 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Atlassian Universal Plugin Manager

- [CVE-2018-5229](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-5229/): Cross-site scripting in Universal Plugin Manager (medium 5.4)
- [CVE-2019-14999](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-14999/): Cross-site request forgery in Universal Plugin Manager (medium 4.3)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2018-20233 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2018-20233 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Atlassian Universal Plugin Manager, published on 18 Jan 2019. An attacker needs administrator access to exploit it, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-20233 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Atlassian Universal Plugin Manager. 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-2018-20233/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-20233/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2018-20233
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-20233
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2018-20233

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-20233/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.