haxtheweb/issues

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Starting in version 11.0.6 and prior to version 25.0.0, the file upload functionality in HAXCMS PHP only validates file extensions using a regex pattern without checking the actual file content or MIME type. This allows attackers to upload malicious files (e.g., PHP webshells) disguised as legitimate image files, potentially leading to remote code execution. Version 25.0.0 contains a fix for the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Versions prior to 26.0.1 use `uniqid` for generating salts, which is unsuitable. Version 26.0.1 fixes the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Versions prior to 26.0.0 suffer from an improper session termination vulnerability where authentication tokens remain valid after user logout. This allows attackers who obtain valid tokens to maintain persistent access to authenticated CMS functionality, bypassing the intended session termination mechanism and enabling unauthorized access to CMS metadata and administrative functions. Version 26.0.0 fixes the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Prior to version 26.0.0, an Authenticated Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability in the HAXCMS saveOutline endpoint allows a low-privileged user to read arbitrary files on the server by manipulating the location field written into site.json. This enables attackers to exfiltrate sensitive system files such as /etc/passwd, application secrets, or configuration files accessible to the web server (www-data). Version 26.0.0 patches the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Prior to version 26.0.0, the HAX CMS NodeJS application crashes when an authenticated attacker sends a specially crafted site creation request to the createSite endpoint. A single request is sufficient to take the entire application offline, requiring a manual server restart to restore service. Version 26.0.0 fixes the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Starting in version 25.0.0 and prior to version 26.0.0, the haxcms_refresh_token cookie is set without the Secure flag. This allows it to be transmitted over unencrypted HTTP, making it vulnerable to theft via packet sniffing on the network. Version 26.0.0 fixes the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Prior to version 26.0.0, an attack chain utilizing Stored XSS alongside dynamic token exposure in the `/system/api/connectionSettings` endpoint allows an authenticated attacker to perform a complete cross-tenant account takeover. The API dynamically leaks the active session's authentication tokens (including the `jwt`, `user_token`, `site_token`, and `appstore_token`) into a global JavaScript variable (`window.appSettings`). An attacker can exploit the XSS vulnerability to force a victim's browser to silently fetch their specific connection settings, extract the tokens, and exfiltrate them to an attacker-controlled webhook. Version 26.0.0 patches the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. A stored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability exists in versions prior to 26.0.0 due to improper sanitization of the `<video-player>` component. The component allows `javascript:` URIs in the `source` attribute, which are executed when the page is viewed. This enables attackers to execute arbitrary JavaScript in the context of the victim’s browser and access sensitive data such as JWT tokens and more. Version 26.0.0 fixes the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Prior to version 26.0.0 of HAX CMS PHP, the `saveFile` endpoint validates upload extensions case-insensitively and writes the filename to disk verbatim, but the `.htaccess` rule that forces `Content-Disposition: attachment` on HTML files is case-sensitive. An HTML file uploaded with an uppercase extension (`.HTML`, `.Html`, `.HTM`) is still served as `text/html` but the forced-download header never applies, so the browser renders it inline and executes any embedded JavaScript in the HAXcms origin. This bypasses the mitigation shipped for CVE-2026-22704. Version 26.0.0 contains a fix.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. A stored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability exists in versions prior to 26.0.0 due to improper sanitization of `<iframe>` elements. The application allows `javascript:` URIs in the `src` attribute, which are executed when a malicious page is viewed. This enables attackers to execute arbitrary JavaScript in the context of the victim’s browser and access sensitive data exposed to client-side scripts. Version 26.0.0 fixes the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. The PHP version of HAX CMS prior to version 26.0.0 has an authenticated file overwrite vulnerability. An attacker can exploit this vulnerability to configure malicious Git filter commands and achieve code execution on the HAX CMS server. Version 26.0.0 patches the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Starting in version 9.0.1 and prior to version 26.0.0 of @haxtheweb/open-apis, multiple functions conduct substring-only matching to validate hostnames to which basic authorization should be sent. An attacker can append the matched substrings to an attacker-controlled endpoint and capture authentication. Version 26.0.0 fixes the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Prior to version 26.0.0, the `hmacBase64()` function in the HAXcms Node.js backend contains two critical cryptographic implementation errors that together allow any unauthenticated attacker to extract the system’s private signing key and forge arbitrary admin-level JSON Web Tokens (JWTs) allowing them to get full admin access with a single HTTP request. First, the function passes the literal string "0" as the HMAC signing key instead of the key parameter, making every HAXcms instance compute identical HMACs for the same input. Then, after computing the HMAC, the function concatenates the real key parameter which is "this.privateKey + this.salt", the system’s master signing secret is directly onto the output. The combined buffer is base64-encoded and returned as the token. Every base64url token produced has the same structure: 32 bytes HMAC keyed with "0" and N bytes of `privateKey+salt`. An attacker base64-decodes any token, discards the first 32 bytes, and reads the private key directly. The `/system/api/connectionSettings` endpoint is unauthenticated and returns multiple tokens generated by this function. A single GET request to this endpoint exposes the private key. The PHP backend implements this function correctly with the actual key and returns only the hash. The PHP version produces 44-character tokens whereas the broken Node.js version produces 139+ character tokens. Version 26.0.0 fixes the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Prior to version 26.0.0, an OS command injection vulnerability exists in the Git.php library of the HAXcms PHP backend. The application constructs shell command strings using unsanitized input and executes them via proc_open(). An attacker who can control parameters passed into Git operations can execute arbitrary OS commands with the privileges of the web server. Out of 17 functions that invoke shell commands only 1 function (`commit()`) correctly uses `escapeshellarg()`. When combined with another vulnerability that allows configuration manipulation, this issue can lead to full remote code execution and complete system compromise. Version 26.0.0 patches the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. An authenticated Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF) vulnerability in versions prior to 26.0.0 allows authenticated users to fetch arbitrary internal or local resources and write the responses to a web-accessible directory, enabling arbitrary file read and internal network access. Version 26.0.0 contains a fix.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Starting in version 2.0.0 and prior to version 26.0.0, the gitlist plugin is exposed to unauthenticated users, allowing unauthenticated browsing of git repositories and git history. Version 26.0.0 patches the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Versions up to and including 26.0.0 are affected by a stored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the `/system/api/saveNode` endpoint. An authenticated user with a permission to edit pages can bypass the HTML sanitizer by injecting an event handler attribute without whitespace before the attribute name. @haxtheweb/haxcms-nodejs 26.0.1 and haxcms-php 26.0.2 patch the issue.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. Prior to 25.0.0, the /server-status endpoint is publicly accessible and exposes sensitive information including authentication tokens (user_token), user activity, client IP addresses, and server configuration details. This allows any unauthenticated user to monitor real-time user interactions and gather internal infrastructure information. This vulnerability is fixed in 25.0.0.

HAX CMS helps manage microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. In versions 11.0.6 to before 25.0.0, HAX CMS is vulnerable to stored XSS, which could lead to account takeover. This issue has been patched in version 25.0.0.

HAX CMS allows you to manage your microsite universe with PHP or NodeJs backends. In versions 11.0.13 and below of haxcms-nodejs and versions 11.0.8 and below of haxcms-php, API endpoints do not perform authorization checks when interacting with a resource. Both the JS and PHP versions of the CMS do not verify that a user has permission to interact with a resource before performing a given operation. The API endpoints within the HAX CMS application check if a user is authenticated, but don't check for authorization before performing an operation. This is fixed in versions 11.0.14 of haxcms-nodejs and 11.0.9 of haxcms-php.

HAX CMS allows users to manage their microsite universe with a NodeJS or PHP backend. In haxcms-nodejs versions 11.0.12 and below and in haxcms-php versions 11.0.7 and below, all pages within the HAX CMS application do not contain headers to prevent other websites from loading the site within an iframe. This applies to both the CMS and generated sites. An unauthenticated attacker can load the standalone login page or other sensitive functionality within an iframe, performing a UI redressing attack (clickjacking). This can be used to perform social engineering attacks to attempt to coerce users into performing unintended actions within the HAX CMS application. This is fixed in haxcms-nodejs version 11.0.13 and haxcms-php 11.0.8.

HAX CMS NodeJS allows users to manage their microsite universe with a NodeJS backend. Versions 11.0.9 and below were distributed with hardcoded default credentials for the user and superuser accounts. Additionally, the application has default private keys for JWTs. Users aren't prompted to change credentials or secrets during installation, and there is no way to change them through the UI. An unauthenticated attacker can read the default user credentials and JWT private keys from the public haxtheweb GitHub repositories. These credentials and keys can be used to access unconfigured self-hosted instances of the application, modify sites, and perform further attacks. This is fixed in version 11.0.10.

HAXcms with nodejs backend allows users to start the server in any HAXsite or HAXcms instance. In versions 11.0.6 and below, the NodeJS version of HAXcms uses an insecure default configuration designed for local development. The default configuration does not perform authorization or authentication checks. If a user were to deploy haxcms-nodejs without modifying the default settings, ‘HAXCMS_DISABLE_JWT_CHECKS‘ would be set to ‘true‘ and their deployment would lack session authentication. This is fixed in version 11.0.7.

HAX CMS NodeJs allows users to manage their microsite universe with a NodeJs backend. In versions 11.0.7 and below, the NodeJS version of HAX CMS has a disabled Content Security Policy (CSP). This configuration is insecure for a production application because it does not protect against cross-site-scripting attacks. The contentSecurityPolicy value is explicitly disabled in the application's Helmet configuration in app.js. This is fixed in version 11.0.8.

HAXiam is a packaging wrapper for HAXcms which allows anyone to spawn their own microsite management platform. In versions 11.0.4 and below, the application returns a 200 response when requesting the data of a valid user and a 404 response when requesting the data of an invalid user. This can be used to infer the existence of valid user accounts. An authenticated attacker can use automated tooling to brute force potential usernames and use the application's response to identify valid accounts. This can be used in conjunction with other vulnerabilities, such as the lack of authorization checks, to enumerate and deface another user's sites. This is fixed in version 11.0.5.

HAX CMS NodeJs allows users to manage their microsite universe with a NodeJs backend. In versions 11.0.8 and below, the HAX CMS NodeJS application crashes when an authenticated attacker provides an API request lacking required URL parameters. This vulnerability affects the listFiles and saveFiles endpoints. This vulnerability exists because the application does not properly handle exceptions which occur as a result of changes to user-modifiable URL parameters. This is fixed in version 11.0.9.

haxcms-nodejs and haxcms-php are backends for HAXcms. The logout function within the application does not terminate a user's session or clear their cookies. Additionally, the application issues a refresh token when logging out. This vulnerability is fixed in 11.0.6.

HAX CMS PHP allows users to manage their microsite universe with a PHP backend. Prior to version 11.0.0, an authenticated Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability in the HAXCMS saveOutline endpoint allows a low-privileged user to read arbitrary files on the server by manipulating the location field written into site.json. This enables attackers to exfiltrate sensitive system files such as /etc/passwd, application secrets, or configuration files accessible to the web server (www-data). The vulnerability stems from the way the HAXCMS backend handles the location field in the site's outline. When a user sends a POST request to /system/api/saveOutline, the backend stores the provided location value directly into the site.json file associated with the site, without validating or sanitizing the input. Later the location parameter is interpreted by the CMS to resolve and load the content for a given node. If the location field contains a relative path like `../../../etc/passwd`, the application will attempt to read and render that file. Version 11.0.0 fixes the issue.

HAX CMS PHP allows users to manage their microsite universe with a PHP backend. Prior to version 11.0.0, in the HAX site editor, users can create a website block to load another site in an iframe. The application allows users to supply a target URL in the website block. When the HAX site is visited, the client's browser will query the supplied URL. An authenticated attacker can create a HAX site with a website block pointing at an attacker-controlled server running Responder or a similar tool. The attacker can then conduct a phishing attack by convincing another user to visit their malicious HAX site to harvest credentials. Version 11.0.0 contains a patch for the issue.

HAX CMS PHP allows users to manage their microsite universe with a PHP backend. Prior to version 11.0.3, the `gitImportSite` functionality obtains a URL string from a POST request and insufficiently validates user input. The `set_remote` function later passes this input into `proc_open`, yielding OS command injection. An authenticated attacker can craft a URL string that bypasses the validation checks employed by the `filter_var` and `strpos` functions in order to execute arbitrary OS commands on the backend server. The attacker can exfiltrate command output via an HTTP request. Version 11.0.3 contains a patch for the issue.

HAX CMS PHP allows users to manage their microsite universe with a PHP backend. Prior to version 11.0.0, the application does not sufficiently sanitize user input, allowing for the execution of arbitrary JavaScript code. The 'saveNode' and 'saveManifest' endpoints take user input and store it in the JSON schema for the site. This content is then rendered in the generated HAX site. Although the application does not allow users to supply a `script` tag, it does allow the use of other HTML tags to run JavaScript. Version 11.0.0 fixes the issue.

HAX open-apis provides microservice apis for HAX webcomponents repo that are shared infrastructure calls. An unauthenticated information disclosure vulnerability exists in the Penn State University deployment of the HAX content management system via the `haxPsuUsage` API endpoint, related to a flat present in open-apis versions up to and including 10.0.2. This allows any remote unauthenticated user to retrieve a full list of PSU websites hosted on HAX CMS. When chained with other authorization issues (e.g., HAX-3), this could assist in targeted attacks such as unauthorized content modification or deletion. Commit 06c2e1fbb7131a8fe66aa0600f38dcacae6b7ac7 patches the vulnerability.

HAX CMS PHP allows you to manage your microsite universe with PHP backend. Multiple file upload functions within the HAX CMS PHP application call a ’save’ function in ’HAXCMSFile.php’. This save function uses a denylist to block specific file types from being uploaded to the server. This list is non-exhaustive and only blocks ’.php’, ’.sh’, ’.js’, and ’.css’ files. The existing logic causes the system to "fail open" rather than "fail closed." This vulnerability is fixed in 10.0.3.