Cyber Resilience

CVE-2023-22973

Path Traversal in Open-Emr Openemr ≤ 7.0.0

Public PoCPath Traversal
Published
22 February 2023
Modified
21 November 2024
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 8.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.018 77th percentile
Risk Priority 71 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2023-22973 is a high-severity Path Traversal (CWE-22) vulnerability in Open-Emr Openemr. Its CVSS base score is 8.8 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked in the top 23% 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.

CVE-2023-22973 is a local file inclusion vulnerability in the interface/forms/LBF/new.php component of OpenEMR versions prior to 7.0.0. The flaw is triggered through the formname parameter and is tracked under CWE-22, carrying a CVSS 3.1 score of 8.8.

Remote authenticated users can supply a crafted formname value to include and execute arbitrary local files, resulting in remote code execution on the underlying server.

Official OpenEMR patch notes for the 7.0.0 release address the issue, and independent analysis from SonarSource confirms the path to code execution and the availability of the fix.

EPSS for the CVE rose from a low baseline to a peak of 0.0542 on 2025-01-22 before receding to the current value of 0.0073, indicating a period of increased exploitation interest after disclosure.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

A Local File Inclusion (LFI) vulnerability in interface/forms/LBF/new.php in OpenEMR < 7.0.0 allows remote authenticated users to execute code via the formname parameter.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2026-25928Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2026-24848Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2026-24849Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2026-24488Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2019-14530Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2025-29789Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2025-21048Shared CWE-22
CVE-2026-23939Shared CWE-22
CVE-2024-7145Shared CWE-22
CVE-2023-42225Shared CWE-22

Affected Assets

open-emr
openemr
≤ 7.0.0

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V5.3.2

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.

addresses: CWE-22

Validates pathnames and filenames to prevent traversal outside intended directories.

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.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Patching/maintenance can remediate known path-traversal flaws in deployed software (partial prevention of exploitability) but does nothing to stop the coding defect from being introduced in the first place.

PR.AA-05 none match
prevents

PR.AA-05 defines and reviews access policies but does not address code-level pathname neutralization, so neither direction prevents CWE-22.

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.

finds

Security testing in development catches path traversal via static/dynamic analysis.

prevents

Secure SDLC mandates input validation and path sanitization that directly prevent path traversal.

prevents

Application security requirements include rules for safe file handling and canonicalization.

prevents

Secure architecture principles require least-privilege file access and directory isolation.

prevents

Secure coding standards explicitly forbid unsafe path construction and mandate safe APIs.

mitigates

Information access restriction limits which files an application may read or write.

References