CVE-2023-36487
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 · uneditedThe password reset function in ILIAS 7.0_beta1 through 7.20 and 8.0_beta1 through 8.1 allows remote attackers to take over the account.
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 · moderate confidenceThe password reset function in ILIAS versions 7.0_beta1 through 7.20 and 8.0_beta1 through 8.1 contains a critical vulnerability allowing remote unauthenticated attackers to bypass the reset mechanism and take over arbitrary user accounts by manipulating the password reset process.
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>= 7.0, <= 7.20>= 8.0, <= 8.1CVSS 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
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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 installed ILIAS versionLocate the ILIAS version file or check the admin dashboard for the current version number. Typical locations include a version.php file in the root directory or the 'Release' information in the Administration > System Settings area.Affected if The installed version is 7.0 through 7.20, or 8.0 through 8.1.
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Verify password reset functionality is enabledCheck the ILIAS configuration for the password reset feature. This is typically found in the Administration > Authentication and Registration settings, where the 'Password Reset' or 'Forgot Password' option controls whether the function is active.Affected if Password reset is enabled and the version falls within the affected range.
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Review authentication configuration for reset token settingsExamine the authentication configuration files or settings that control the password reset token generation and validation. Look for settings related to token expiration, token uniqueness, or validation logic.Affected if The token validation logic permits bypass or the token is not properly tied to the user account being reset.
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Inspect access control for password reset endpointsCheck the web server and ILIAS access control settings to determine if the password reset endpoint is accessible to unauthenticated users. Verify that no IP-based or additional authentication restrictions are applied to the reset URL.Affected if The password reset endpoint is reachable without prior authentication.
A user is affected if their ILIAS installation runs version 7.0-7.20 or 8.0-8.1 and the password reset functionality is enabled and publicly accessible.
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 dataUpdate ILIAS to the latest patched version (7.21+ or 8.2+) immediately. Review server logs for evidence of exploitation and consider forcing password resets for high-privilege accounts as a precaution.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-36487 — 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-2023-36487 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
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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