Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
A specially crafted network request can make vulnerable Mahara installations return backed-up content from another Text section. This could expose information across content boundaries without authentication or user interaction. The limited public description does not establish broader data modification or service disruption.
Executive priority
Treat this as an immediate patching and exposure-assessment priority for reachable Mahara systems. Prioritize systems containing sensitive portfolio, educational, or organizational content. Escalate suspected cross-section content access for incident review, while recognizing that active exploitation is not established by the supplied sources.
Technical view
CVE-2026-42164 affects Mahara’s Text block/section functionality before versions 25.04.5 and 26.04.0. Crafted calls can recall backed-up content belonging to another Text section. The record assigns CWE-200 and CVSS 3.1 score 9.8, with network access, low complexity, no privileges, and no user interaction.
Likely exposure
Mahara deployments running versions earlier than 25.04.5 or 26.04.0, as applicable to their release line, are potentially exposed. Network-reachable instances warrant the fastest review. The supplied sources provide no affected CPEs or configuration prerequisites, so exact deployment exposure requires local version and vendor-guidance verification.
Exploitation context
The supplied record does not report active exploitation, and this CVE is not identified as KEV in the bundle. No public exploit evidence is provided. The CVSS vector nevertheless indicates remote, unauthenticated, low-complexity exploitation without user interaction, making vulnerable reachable systems potentially attractive targets.
Researcher notes
The public description supports unintended disclosure of backed-up Text-section content and maps to CWE-200. It does not explain the CVSS vector’s high integrity and availability impacts, affected configurations, or vulnerable endpoint details. Avoid assuming those broader impacts until Mahara publishes supporting technical evidence.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade to 25.04.5 or 26.04.0, matching the deployed release line, or a later vendor-supported version.
- Review Mahara’s advisory for release-specific instructions and any additional mitigations.
- Restrict unnecessary network access to Mahara until upgrading is complete.
- Preserve relevant application and access logs for investigation.
Validation and detection
- Inventory all Mahara deployments and record their exact versions.
- Confirm each deployment is 25.04.5, 26.04.0, or a later vendor-supported release.
- Identify which Mahara instances are reachable from untrusted networks.
- Review logs for unusual Text block or section requests and unexpected content access.
- Validate remediation using vendor-supported checks without accessing unrelated user content.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-200: Information exposure and cloud metadata lookup
Information exposure and SSRF weaknesses can make discovery, cloud metadata, and credential material review relevant. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2026-42164 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Critical
- CVSS
- 9.8 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
SSVC decision data
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H3.95.9CISA-ADPVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
9.8CriticalVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Vulnerability timeline
Timeline events are normalized from CVE metadata, CNA source timelines, ADP timelines, and KEV metadata when present.
- CVE reservedCVE Program
The CVE ID was reserved by the assigning CNA.
- CVE publishedCVE Program
The CVE record was published.
- CVE updatedCVE Program
The CVE record metadata indicates this as the latest update time.
ADP provider summaries
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://mahara.org/CVE reference, mitre
- https://mahara.org/interaction/forum/topic.php?id=10057CVE reference, mitre
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor
Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.