CVE-2022-31261
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedAn XXE issue was discovered in Morpheus through 5.2.16 and 5.4.x through 5.4.4. A successful attack requires a SAML identity provider to be configured. In order to exploit the vulnerability, the attacker must know the unique SAML callback ID of the configured identity source. A remote attacker can send a request crafted with an XXE payload to invoke a malicious DTD hosted on a system that they control. This results in reading local files that the application has access to.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceAn XXE vulnerability in Morpheus versions 5.2.16 and prior and 5.4.x through 5.4.4 allows authenticated attackers with knowledge of a SAML callback ID to inject malicious DTDs and read local files accessible to the application. The attack requires a configured SAML identity provider.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data<= 5.2.16>= 5.4.0, <= 5.4.4CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify Morpheus versionAccess the Morpheus UI Administration section or check the appliancedetails API endpoint to determine the installed version numberAffected if The installed version is 5.2.16 or lower, OR falls between 5.4.0 and 5.4.4 inclusive
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Verify SAML configuration existsNavigate to Administration > Authentication > SAML in the Morpheus UI or check the SAML configuration API to confirm a SAML identity provider is configuredAffected if A SAML identity provider is configured and enabled in the Morpheus environment
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Confirm SAML callback endpoints are accessibleCheck network access to the SAML assertion consumer service (ACS) and single logout (SLO) endpoints. These are typically found at /saml/assert, /saml/validate, or similar paths under the Morpheus application URLAffected if The SAML callback endpoints are reachable from network locations where potential attackers could obtain the callback ID
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Check for existing XXE indicatorsReview Morpheus logs for unusual XML parsing errors, attempts to load external DTDs, or unexpected file access patterns in SAML-related endpointsAffected if Logs show XML parsing errors or patterns consistent with XXE exploitation attempts
A Morpheus instance is affected if it runs version 5.2.16 or earlier, or 5.4.0 through 5.4.4, AND has SAML authentication configured with accessible callback endpoints.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataUpgrade Morpheus to the patched version. Until then, restrict network access to SAML configuration endpoints and consider disabling SAML authentication if not required.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,872.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-31261 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2022-31261 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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