CVE-2022-36446
Webmin ≤ 1.997
Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HCVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.
Summary
CVE-2022-36446 is a critical-severity Improper Encoding or Escaping of Output (CWE-116) vulnerability in Webmin Webmin. Its CVSS base score is 9.8 (Critical).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Content Injection (T1659); ranked in the top 0.1% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
Webmin versions prior to 1.997 contain a command injection vulnerability in software/apt-lib.pl that stems from missing HTML escaping on a UI command. The flaw is tracked as CWE-116 and carries a CVSS 3.1 score of 9.8, reflecting network-accessible attack vectors that require no authentication or user interaction.
Unauthenticated remote attackers can supply crafted input to the affected package-update functionality, resulting in arbitrary command execution on the underlying system with full confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact. Public exploit code demonstrates both remote code execution and package-updates command injection against version 1.996.
The referenced GitHub commit and version diff show that the issue was resolved by adding proper output encoding in the 1.997 release. Administrators should upgrade to Webmin 1.997 or later to eliminate the vulnerable code path.
EPSS values remain elevated, with a current score of 0.9293 and a recorded peak of 0.9708, consistent with the availability of working proof-of-concept exploits shortly after disclosure.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2022-39156
Vulnerability Data
software/apt-lib.pl in Webmin before 1.997 lacks HTML escaping for a UI command.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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V1.1.2V1.2.1V1.2.3
Likely Mitigating Controls AI
Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.
Validating that output matches expected content directly mitigates failures to properly encode or escape data for its destination context.
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Secure SDLC practices directly require proper output encoding to prevent injection and message malformation.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Secure coding standards explicitly require correct output encoding and escaping to preserve message structure.
Security testing can detect missing or incorrect encoding but does not itself implement the control.
Secure development life cycle mandates output encoding/escaping practices that directly prevent improper encoding.
Application security requirements include explicit rules for safe output handling and encoding.
Secure architecture principles reduce the likelihood of missing encoding but do not prescribe the actual technique.