Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-33301

Open-Emr Openemr ≤ 8.0.0.2

Public PoC
Published
19 March 2026
Modified
20 March 2026
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v4 7.1
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
EPSS Score 0.0044 37th percentile
Risk Priority 36 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-2026-33301 is a high-severity Improper Encoding or Escaping of Output (CWE-116) vulnerability in Open-Emr Openemr. Its CVSS base score is 7.1 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Content Injection (T1659); ranked at the 37th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); 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-2026-33301 is an arbitrary file read vulnerability in OpenEMR, a free and open source electronic health records and medical practice management application. The issue affects versions prior to 8.0.0.2 and resides in the PDF creation function for Eye Exam forms within patient encounters. Specifically, form answers submitted by users are parsed as unescaped HTML, enabling the inclusion of arbitrary image files from the server in the generated PDF. The vulnerability is rated with a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.1 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N) and is associated with CWE-116 (Improper Encoding or Escaping of Output).

The vulnerability can be exploited by authenticated users holding the "Notes - my encounters" role, who have permission to fill Eye Exam forms in patient encounters. By injecting malicious HTML into form answers that references arbitrary image files on the server, an attacker can trigger the PDF generation process to embed sensitive file contents as images. This results in high confidentiality and integrity impacts, allowing unauthorized access to and exposure of server files through the downloadable PDF, without requiring user interaction beyond normal workflow.

Mitigation is addressed in OpenEMR version 8.0.0.2, which fixes the unescaped HTML parsing in the PDF creation function. Security practitioners should upgrade to this version immediately. Additional details are available in the GitHub security advisory (GHSA-v9v3-q973-xp2h) and the fixing commit (dccc962f06bdf6105ca85c277915167caf3e7c28).

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

OpenEMR is a free and open source electronic health records and medical practice management application. Prior to 8.0.0.2, users with the `Notes - my encounters` role can fill Eye Exam forms in patient encounters. The answers to the form can…

more

be printed out in PDF form. An arbitrary file read vulnerability was identified in the PDF creation function where the form answers are parsed as unescaped HTML, allowing an attacker to include arbitrary image files from the server in the generated PDF. Version 8.0.0.2 fixes the issue.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1659 Content Injection Initial Access
Adversaries may gain access and continuously communicate with victims by injecting malicious content into systems through online network traffic.
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.
T1059 Command and Scripting Interpreter Execution
Adversaries may abuse command and script interpreters to execute commands, scripts, or binaries.
T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution Execution
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in client applications to execute code.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2026-21443Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2026-32124Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2026-32238Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2025-31121Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2026-32121Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2022-2733Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2018-15153Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2026-33303Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2023-2942Same product: Open-Emr Openemr
CVE-2025-69231Same product: Open-Emr Openemr

Affected Assets

open-emr
openemr
≤ 8.0.0.2

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)
  • V1.1.2
  • V1.2.1
  • V1.2.3

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.

addresses: CWE-116

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.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

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.

prevents

Secure coding standards explicitly require correct output encoding and escaping to preserve message structure.

finds

Security testing can detect missing or incorrect encoding but does not itself implement the control.

prevents

Secure development life cycle mandates output encoding/escaping practices that directly prevent improper encoding.

prevents

Application security requirements include explicit rules for safe output handling and encoding.

prevents

Secure architecture principles reduce the likelihood of missing encoding but do not prescribe the actual technique.

References