Atlassian Issues Grave Warning About Critical Security Vulnerability
Atlassian, the prominent Australian software company, has issued a grave warning about a critical security vulnerability that poses a significant threat of data loss for its customers. This revelation comes shortly after state-backed hackers targeted Atlassian products in recent weeks.
In a recent advisory, the company urgently advises customers to patch a flaw affecting on-premise versions of Atlassian Confluence Data Center and Server. This collaborative wiki system, widely used by enterprises for organizing and sharing work, was recently exploited by Chinese state-sponsored hackers who took advantage of a separate maximum-rated vulnerability (rated 10.0) to compromise a limited number of Atlassian customers.
Newly Identified Vulnerability: CVE-2023-22518
The newly identified vulnerability, labeled CVE-2023-22518 and carrying a severity rating of 9.1 out of 10, is described as an “improper authorization vulnerability.” Atlassian warns that if exploited by an unauthenticated attacker, it could result in significant data loss. However, the company has not provided specific details on how this flaw could lead to data loss, and Atlassian spokesperson Ana Keltchina did not immediately respond to inquiries.
As of October 31, Atlassian reports no active exploitation of the vulnerability and assures that there is no impact on confidentiality, as attackers cannot exfiltrate any instance data. Atlassian Cloud sites accessed via an atlassian.net domain are also confirmed to be unaffected. In a message within the advisory, Atlassian CISO Bala Sathiamurthy emphasized that while the flaw is not actively exploited at the moment, customers must take immediate action to protect their instances. The advisory categorizes all publicly accessible Confluence Data Center and Server versions as being at critical risk, necessitating immediate attention. Atlassian strongly advises administrators to promptly upgrade to a fixed version and, if that proves impractical, apply temporary mitigations.
Additional Recommendations and Context
The advisory further recommends restricting instances accessible to the public internet, even those with user authentication, from external network access until a patch can be applied. It’s crucial to note that earlier this month, Atlassian disclosed plans to acquire the video messaging service Loom for $975 million. The company expressed its belief that Loom could serve as a valuable collaboration tool, particularly for its platform’s Jira and Confluence products.
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