# CVE-2024-4447: Missing authorization in dotCMS core

> Authenticated users can access sensitive session and role data via DWR endpoints, enabling privilege escalation and user impersonation.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.9 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:L`)
- **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:** 26 Jul 2024
- **Updated:** 24 Feb 2026
- **Also known as:** GHSA-whhx-238v-wr87

## What is CVE-2024-4447?

CVE-2024-4447 is a critical missing authorization vulnerability in dotCMS core, published on 26 Jul 2024. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In the System → Maintenance tool, the Logged Users tab surfaces sessionId data for all users via the Direct Web Remoting API (UserSessionAjax.getSessionList.dwr) calls. While this is information that would and should be available to admins who possess "Sign In As" powers, admins who otherwise lack this privilege would still be able to utilize the session IDs to imitate other users.

While this is a very small attack vector that requires very high permissions to execute, its danger lies principally in obfuscating attribution; all Sign In As operations are attributed appropriately in the log files, and a malicious administrator could use this information to render their dealings untraceable — including those admins who have not been granted this ability — such as by using a session ID to generate an API token.

Fixed in: 24.07.12 / 23.01.20 LTS / 23.10.24v13 LTS / 24.04.24v5 LTS

This was the original found by researcher Zakaria Agharghar.

2. Later, on October 20, 2025, another researcher (Chris O’Neill) found additional affected DWR Endpoints that are vulnerable to Information Disclosure, namely and in addition to the original found of "UserSessionAjax.getSessionList.dwr - Session ID exposure":

  *  UserAjax.getUsersList.dwr - Enumerate all users with IDs, names, emails

  *  RoleAjax.getUserRole.dwr - Get user role information

  *  RoleAjax.getRole.dwr - Get role details

  *  RoleAjax.getRolePermissions.dwr - View role permissions

  *  RoleAjax.isPermissionableInheriting.dwr - Check permission inheritance

  *  RoleAjax.getCurrentCascadePermissionsJobs.dwr - View permission cascade jobs

  *  ThreadMonitorTool.getThreads.dwr - Monitor system threads; and,

  *  CRITICAL - Privilege Escalation: RoleAjax.saveRolePermission.dwr - Modify role permissions

Overall CVSS for the above findings:

  *   CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:L https://www.first.org/cvss/calculator/3.1#CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:L 

  *  Score: 9.1 (Critical)

Weakness: CWE-863 (Incorrect Authorization)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2024-4447?


## How do I fix CVE-2024-4447?

No fix has been published for CVE-2024-4447 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2024-4447 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2024-4447 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2024-4447 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2024-4447 is a critical missing authorization vulnerability in dotCMS core, published on 26 Jul 2024. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2024-4447 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: dotCMS core. 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-2024-4447/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4447/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2024-4447
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-4447
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2024-4447

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4447/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.