Semantic MediaWiki 7.3.1 before 7.4.1 Incorrect Authorization via Edit Protection Annotations
Semantic MediaWiki releases from 2.5.0 before 7.4.1 are affected when $smwgEditProtectionRight is enabled. The fix is in 7.4.1.
Written by anthropic/claude-haiku-5.5 from the sources below. Verify against them.
- Exploited
- No known exploitation
- Fix
- Fixed in 7.4.1
- Who is exposed
- Specific setups only
Do first: Check whether your setup matches what the bug needs. Semantic MediaWiki from 2.5.0 before 7.4.1, with $smwgEditProtectionRight enabled The target page must be a protected page that transcludes an unprotected template the attacker can edit
- Published
- Last modified
- Whether it needs action now or is a reference record, by fixed rules, with why. Last checked is when cve.now last re-read it.What do these mean? →
- Reference
- Last checked
- A 0-100 score for how much a CVE matters across the industry: exploitation, exposure, how widely the software is used, severity and whether a fix exists.What do these mean? →
- 15/100 · provisional
- How many real-world setups can hit the bug, from the vendor's advisory and CISA data. It does not know your setup.What do these mean? →
- Specific setups only
- Whether working attack code is public (Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei or GitHub). Public code makes attacks easier.What do these mean? →
- None on Exploit-DB, Metasploit or GitHub
Summary
Semantic MediaWiki versions before 7.4.1 contain an incorrect authorization flaw in how edit protection changes are checked. An attacker with a low-privilege editor account can remotely add a special annotation to a transcluded template, removing administrator edit and move protection from pages while the change is logged under the administrator's name.
Read the original description
Semantic MediaWiki 7.3.1 before 7.4.1 contains an incorrect authorization vulnerability in EditProtectionUpdater::userMayChangeProtection() that checks protection changes against the page's latest revision author. Editors can add {{#set:Is edit protected=false}} to a transcluded template, removing administrator edit and move protection logged under the administrator's name.
Who should check
Teams running Semantic MediaWiki 2.5.0 through 7.4.0 with $smwgEditProtectionRight enabled, including those on 7.3.1 or later
Not fixed by: Releases with the GHSA-9824 fix (7.3.1 and later) remain affected.
Read the source excerpt
“Affected: every release since 2.5.0 in which $smwgEditProtectionRight is enabled”
cve.now Index
- Exploitation?/40Unknown. No CISA SSVC exploitation rating yet
- Exposure8/25Specific setups only, reachable over the network
- Reach?/20Unknown. No tracked technology or package matched
- Severity7.1/10CVSS 7.1
- No patch0/5No signal
What would change the score
- Would score about 65 if added to CISA KEV
- Would score about 60 if CISA's SSVC rates exploitation active
- Would score about 22 if CISA's SSVC rates it automatable
What to do
Check whether your setup matches what the bug needs.
Semantic MediaWiki from 2.5.0 before 7.4.1, with $smwgEditProtectionRight enabled The target page must be a protected page that transcludes an unprotected template the attacker can editUpgrade to a fixed version: 7.4.1.
Check your systems with an agent
Paste this into a coding or ops agent. It checks your systems read-only and reports a table per asset.
Check whether my systems are affected by CVE-2026-126566 (Semantic MediaWiki 7.3.1 before 7.4.1 Incorrect Authorization via Edit Protection Annotations), using the cve.now data below. Rules: work read-only. Do not run exploit code, proof-of-concept scripts or scanners that send attack payloads, and do not change any configuration, package, image or deployment. Report findings only. What cve.now has for CVE-2026-126566 (entry last updated 2026-11-11): Affected: - SemanticMediaWiki SemanticMediaWiki: from 7.3.1, fixed in 7.4.1 Fixed versions: 7.4.1. Conditions (all must be true for the bug to be hit): - Semantic MediaWiki from 2.5.0 before 7.4.1, with $smwgEditProtectionRight enabled (source: https://github.com/SemanticMediaWiki/SemanticMediaWiki/security/advisories/GHSA-gh59-2vh3-6cgm) - The target page must be a protected page that transcludes an unprotected template the attacker can edit (source: https://github.com/SemanticMediaWiki/SemanticMediaWiki/security/advisories/GHSA-gh59-2vh3-6cgm) Setup: the bug needs a feature or setting that is off by default or uncommon. Check whether each asset has it on. Attacker needs: network access, low-privilege login, no user action. CISA KEV: CVE-2026-126566 is not listed as of cve.now's last read. This KEV status is for CVE-2026-126566 only. If you also check another CVE, look up its own KEV status; never assume it from this one. How to check: - Installed software: check what is actually running, not what a repo declares. Read the version from each host, container image and Kubernetes node (the binary's version output, the OS package database, image layers), and check whether the conditions above hold there. Distribution packages may carry a backported fix under an older version number; confirm against the distribution's own advisory. Verify against the linked advisories before concluding, and cite the date you read each one: - https://github.com/SemanticMediaWiki/SemanticMediaWiki/security/advisories/GHSA-gh59-2vh3-6cgm - https://github.com/SemanticMediaWiki/SemanticMediaWiki/commit/32ca6d8fc75735aa7a2ecc573886391da126da9b - https://github.com/SemanticMediaWiki/SemanticMediaWiki/releases/tag/7.4.1 - https://github.com/SemanticMediaWiki/SemanticMediaWiki/blob/7.4.0/src/Protection/EditProtectionUpdater.php#L147-L200 - https://github.com/SemanticMediaWiki/SemanticMediaWiki/blob/7.4.0/src/DataUpdater.php#L360-L375 - https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/semantic-mediawiki-7.3.1-before-7.4.1-incorrect-authorization-via-edit-protection-annotations Do not conclude an asset is unaffected unless you checked it and the evidence covers both its version and the conditions above. If you could not check something, mark it unknown and say what is missing. Report a table with one row per asset and these columns: Asset | Version or build | Status (affected, fixed, not applicable, unknown) | Compensating controls | Exposure (internet-facing, internal, none) | Evidence | Next action. Entry: https://cve.now/CVE-2026-126566 For follow-up questions, use the cve.now MCP server at https://mcp.cve.now/mcp (no authentication), for example get_vulnerability with id CVE-2026-126566.
Timeline
- CVE published
- First seen by cve.now
Affected versions
- SemanticMediaWiki SemanticMediaWiki
From 7.3.1 · fixed in 7.4.1
Evidence 8
Vendor advisory · 1
Establishes: Affected and fixed versions.
- Advisory
CVE record · 2
Establishes: The identifier and description.
- Record
- Record
Other links · 5
- Patch
- Repository
- Repository
- Repository
- Link
Corrections
None so far.
Something wrong on this page? Report an error. Every fix is listed here.
Questions about CVE-2026-126566
Is CVE-2026-126566 being exploited?
It is not in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, and CISA's SSVC assessment does not mark exploitation as active. That does not mean it has not been attacked: vendors and researchers can report attacks before CISA lists them. No public exploit code is tracked.Source: cve.now feed data
What does this mean?
An ordinary editor can remove administrator edit or move protection from a page that includes an unprotected template the editor can change. The editor can then edit or move the formerly protected page, and the protection log credits the change to the administrator who set the protection.Source: github.com, vulncheck.com
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-126566?
SemanticMediaWiki: from 7.3.1 before 7.4.1.Source: cve.now feed data
Am I affected, and how do I check?
Semantic MediaWiki releases from 2.5.0 before 7.4.1 are affected when $smwgEditProtectionRight is enabled. Check the installed version on Special:Version and check whether $smwgEditProtectionRight is set in LocalSettings.php.Source: github.com, vulncheck.com
How do I fix CVE-2026-126566?
Upgrade Semantic MediaWiki to 7.4.1 or later.Source: github.com, vulncheck.com