October CMS: Environment Variable Exfiltration via INI Parser Interpolation
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Information disclosure, Code execution
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · None · None
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and GitHub. Impact type from CWE-200 and CWE-94.
Summary
October is a Content Management System (CMS) and web platform. Versions prior to 3.7.14 and 4.1.10 contain a server-side information disclosure vulnerability in the INI settings parser. Because PHP's parse_ini_string() function supports ${} syntax for environment variable interpolation, attackers with Editor access could inject patterns such as ${APP_KEY} or ${DB_PASSWORD} into CMS page settings fields, causing sensitive environment variables to be resolved, stored in the template, and returned to the attacker when the page was reopened. This could enable exfiltration of credentials and secrets (database passwords, AWS keys, application keys), potentially leading to further attacks such as database access or cookie forgery. The vulnerability is only relevant when cms.safe_mode is enabled, as direct PHP injection is already possible otherwise. This issue has been fixed in versions 3.7.14 and 4.1.10. If users are unable to immediately upgrade, they can workaround this issue by restricting Editor tool access to fully trusted administrators only, and ensuring database and cloud service credentials are not accessible from the web server's network.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October CMS | october | before 3.7.14; 4.0.0 to before 4.1.10 | 3.7.14, 4.1.10 | Patch available | CNA |
| — | october/rain (Packagist) | 4.0.0 to before 4.1.10 | 4.1.10 | Patch available | GHSA-g6v3-wv4j-x9hg |
| — | october/rain (Packagist) | before 3.7.14 | 3.7.14 | Patch available | GHSA-g6v3-wv4j-x9hg |
- october VendorOctober CMS Affected before 3.7.14; 4.0.0 to before 4.1.10 Fixed in 3.7.14, 4.1.10 Patch available CNA
- october/rain (Packagist) Vendor— Affected 4.0.0 to before 4.1.10 Fixed in 4.1.10 Patch available GHSA-g6v3-wv4j-x9hg
- october/rain (Packagist) Vendor— Affected before 3.7.14 Fixed in 3.7.14 Patch available GHSA-g6v3-wv4j-x9hg
CPE configurations NVD · 1
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:octobercms:october:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | before 3.7.14; 4.0.0 to before 4.1.10 | Vulnerable | October CMS |
- cpe:2.3:a:octobercms:october:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions before 3.7.14; 4.0.0 to before 4.1.10 Vulnerable ·October CMS
Remediation
- Fix · CNA october (octobercms) Fixed in 3.7.14, 4.1.10
- Fix · GHSA-g6v3-wv4j-x9hg october/rain (Packagist) Fixed in 4.1.10 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-g6v3-wv4j-x9hg october/rain (Packagist) Fixed in 3.7.14 Advisory →
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-25125
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-g6v3-wv4j-x9hg
References
More October CMS October vulnerabilities
- TI-2021-12316 Account Takeover in Octobercms KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.1
- TI-2021-12318 Arbitrary code execution in october/system CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2017-14456 October CMS build 412 is vulnerable to PHP code execution in the file upload… CVSS 3.0HIGH 7.2
- TI-2023-23545 A Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in installation of October v.3.4.16 allows an… CVSS 3.1MEDIUM 5.4
- TI-2023-19223 An arbitrary file upload vulnerability in October CMS v3.4.4 allows attackers to execute… CVSS 3.1MEDIUM 5.4
- TI-2024-30847 October 3.6.30 allows an authenticated admin account to upload a PDF file containing… CVSS 3.1MEDIUM 4.7
Sources
- CVE-2026-25125 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-25125 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-g6v3-wv4j-x9hg · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
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