CVE-2022-35925 is a medium-severity vulnerability classified under CWE-287 (Improper Authentication) affecting the BookWyrm social network platform, specifically versions prior to 0.4.5. BookWyrm is an open-source social network designed for tracking reading activities. The vulnerability arises due to the absence of rate limiting on authentication endpoints, which allows attackers to perform brute-force attacks against user credentials. Without rate limiting, an attacker can repeatedly attempt to guess passwords or authentication tokens without being throttled or blocked, increasing the likelihood of successful unauthorized access. This flaw compromises the authentication mechanism, potentially allowing attackers to gain access to user accounts, including those with administrative privileges if targeted. The issue was addressed in version 0.4.5 by implementing appropriate rate limiting controls. Additionally, administrators of existing BookWyrm instances need to update their nginx.conf configuration files to apply the necessary changes if they cannot immediately upgrade. The vulnerability does not require user interaction beyond the attacker initiating authentication attempts, and no known exploits have been reported in the wild to date. However, the risk remains significant due to the potential for credential compromise and unauthorized access to user data and administrative functions.

For European organizations using BookWyrm, especially libraries, educational institutions, and community groups that rely on this platform for social reading tracking, this vulnerability poses a risk of unauthorized account access. Successful exploitation could lead to exposure of personal reading habits, user data, and potentially administrative control over the platform instance. This could result in privacy violations, data integrity issues, and service disruptions. Given that BookWyrm instances are often self-hosted, the impact may vary depending on the security posture of the hosting environment. Organizations with weak password policies or reused credentials are at higher risk. Furthermore, if attackers gain administrative access, they could manipulate content, disrupt services, or use the compromised instance as a foothold for further network intrusion. Although no widespread exploitation is reported, the ease of brute-force attacks without rate limiting increases the attack surface, making European organizations that have not patched or updated their configurations vulnerable to targeted or opportunistic attacks.

To mitigate this vulnerability, European organizations running BookWyrm instances should immediately upgrade to version 0.4.5 or later, which includes built-in rate limiting on authentication views. For those unable to upgrade promptly, it is critical to manually update the nginx.conf file as per the guidance provided by the BookWyrm project to enforce rate limiting at the web server level. Additionally, organizations should enforce strong password policies, including complexity requirements and regular password changes, to reduce the risk of successful brute-force attempts. Implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA) where possible can further protect user accounts. Monitoring authentication logs for unusual login attempts or spikes in failed authentications can help detect brute-force activity early. Network-level protections such as Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) configured to detect and block brute-force patterns can provide an additional layer of defense. Finally, educating users about the importance of unique, strong passwords and recognizing phishing attempts will help reduce credential compromise risks.