CVE-2023-22518: Atlassian Confluence Data Center and Server

Should you act?

Exploited: patch now if you run it

CISA has confirmed exploitation in the wild. This signal is computed from CISA KEV, EPSS and CVSS data; it is not an editorial verdict.

Yes, if you run Atlassian Confluence Data Center and Server. CISA added this CVE to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2023-11-07, which means there is reliable evidence of exploitation in the wild. US federal agencies must remediate by 2023-11-28; treat that as the outer limit, not the target. CISA also lists it as known to be used in ransomware campaigns.
EPSS 100.0%, percentile 100.0: FIRST’s model estimates a 100.0% chance of exploitation activity in the next 30 days, higher than 100.0% of all scored CVEs (very high). EPSS is a probability, not a verdict.
Remotely reachable with no login and no user interaction. If the vulnerable service is exposed to the internet, prioritize it.
Editorial verdict: Act now. Confluence CVE-2023-22518: Unauthenticated Reset to Admin — Any self-hosted Confluence that is reachable from the internet and not on a fixed release can be wiped and taken over by an unauthenticated request; patch or pull it offline, and Atlassian Cloud users have nothing to do.

What it is

All versions of Confluence Data Center and Server are affected by this unexploited vulnerability. This Improper Authorization vulnerability allows an unauthenticated attacker to reset Confluence and create a Confluence instance administrator account. Using this account, an attacker can then perform all administrative actions that are available to Confluence instance administrator leading to - but not limited to - full loss of confidentiality, integrity and availability. 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.

CISA’s summary

Atlassian Confluence Data Center and Server contain an improper authorization vulnerability that can result in significant data loss when exploited by an unauthenticated attacker. There is no impact on confidentiality since the attacker cannot exfiltrate any data.

Weakness type: CWE-863.

Product: Atlassian Confluence Data Center and Server · Assigned by: atlassian · Published: 2023-10-31

Affected and fixed versions

Vendor	Product	Affected versions (per CVE record)
Atlassian	Confluence Data Center	>= 1.0.0
Atlassian	Confluence Server	>= 1.0.0

Severity scores

Scored by	CVSS	Score	Vector
atlassian	3.0	10 Critical	`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H`

Attack vector: network (remotely reachable)
Attack complexity: low
Privileges required: none (no login)
User interaction: none
Scope: changed (can affect other components)

CVSS measures how bad a flaw is if exploited, not how likely exploitation is. Read it next to the exploitation data below.

Exploitation and urgency

CISA KEV: added 2023-11-07; federal due date 2023-11-28. Known ransomware use: Known.
CISA required action: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.
CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation active, automatable yes, technical impact partial.
FIRST EPSS (model of 2026-10-21): 100.00% probability of exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 100.0.

Timeline

2023-10-31 — CVE record published by atlassian
2023-10-31 — erroneo.us brief: Confluence CVE-2023-22518: Unauthenticated Reset to Admin
2023-11-07 — Added to CISA’s Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog
2023-11-28 — CISA remediation deadline for US federal agencies
2025-10-21 — CVE record last updated

Sources and references

Original sources first. Version and fix details should always be confirmed against the vendor or project advisory.

Other references from the CVE record and advisory

confluence.atlassian.com confluence.atlassian.com
jira.atlassian.com jira.atlassian.com
packetstormsecurity.com packetstormsecurity.com

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