Cyber Resilience

CVE-2024-52807

XXE

Published
24 January 2025
Modified
15 April 2026
CVSS Score v3.1 8.6
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N
EPSS Score 0.0056 44th percentile
Risk Priority 62 floored blend · peak EPSS

CVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.

Summary

CVE-2024-52807 is a high-severity Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference (CWE-611) vulnerability. Its CVSS base score is 8.6 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked at the 44th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to CM-6 (Configuration Settings) and SA-11 (Developer Testing and Evaluation) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

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-2024-52807 is an XML external entity (XXE) injection vulnerability, classified under CWE-611, affecting the HL7 FHIR Implementation Guide (IG) publisher prior to version 1.7.4. This tool processes inputs to generate standard FHIR IGs and performs XSLT transforms on XML files. A malicious DTD tag, such as one containing `]>` , in a processed XML file can lead to the inclusion of sensitive data from the host system in the output XML. The vulnerability was incompletely addressed in a prior release, as revealed by additional testing.

The issue enables exploitation in scenarios where the org.hl7.fhir.publisher component runs on a host that accepts XML submissions from external clients. An unauthenticated attacker with network access (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N) can submit crafted XML, achieving high confidentiality impact (C:H) with a changed scope (S:C), as scored at CVSS 8.6. Successful exploitation allows the attacker to extract data from the host system, such as local files, without requiring privileges, user interaction, or impacting integrity or availability.

Mitigation is available via upgrade to version 1.7.4, which patches the XSLT transform components. Relevant details are documented in the GitHub security advisory (GHSA-8c3x-hq82-gjcm), the commit fixing the issue (3560de2f486d688a3ddcf4aa54d8bdacea380c3d), and the release comparison between 1.7.3 and 1.7.4. No workarounds are known.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

The HL7 FHIR IG publisher is a tool to take a set of inputs and create a standard FHIR IG. Prior to version 1.7.4, XSLT transforms performed by various components are vulnerable to XML external entity injections. A processed XML…

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file with a malicious DTD tag `( ]>` could produce XML containing data from the host system. This impacts use cases where org.hl7.fhir.publisher is being used to within a host where external clients can submit XML. A previous release provided an incomplete solution revealed by new testing. This issue has been patched as of version 1.7.4. No known workarounds are available.

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.
T1005 Data from Local System Collection
Adversaries may search local system sources, such as file systems, configuration files, local databases, virtual machine files, or process memory, to find files of interest and sensitive data prior to Exfiltration.
T1213 Data from Information Repositories Collection
Adversaries may leverage information repositories to mine valuable information.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2023-20173Shared CWE-611
CVE-2025-34142Shared CWE-611
CVE-2023-37200Shared CWE-611
CVE-2025-4639Shared CWE-611
CVE-2024-51132Shared CWE-611
CVE-2024-49535Shared CWE-611
CVE-2026-1227Shared CWE-611
CVE-2023-24187Shared CWE-611
CVE-2024-45072Shared CWE-611
CVE-2024-2374Shared CWE-611

Affected Assets

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)
  • V1.5.1
  • V15.3.2

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

Secure configuration settings can disable external entity processing in XML parsers.

Developer testing can discover XXE flaws through targeted XML parsing tests.

Input validation can reject or sanitize XML containing external entity references.

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-01 mostly match
prevents

Hardened XML parser configurations directly disable external entity resolution.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices include input validation and safe XML parser configuration that prevent XXE.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Vulnerability scanning can discover XXE flaws but does not prevent their introduction in code.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Patching eliminates XXE-vulnerable parser versions but is only one aspect of software maintenance.

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 XXE via static analysis and dynamic XML fuzzing.

finds

Vulnerability management identifies and patches XML libraries with unsafe default entity settings.

prevents

Secure development life cycle mandates input validation and entity handling that directly prevents XXE.

prevents

Application security requirements explicitly call for disabling external entity processing in XML parsers.

prevents

Secure architecture principles include safe parser configuration that mitigates external entity risks.

prevents

Secure coding standards require disabling DTDs and external entities in XML processing.

References