CVE-2022-43415 is a high-severity vulnerability affecting the Jenkins REPO Plugin version 1.15.0 and earlier. The vulnerability arises because the plugin does not properly configure its XML parser to prevent XML External Entity (XXE) attacks. XXE vulnerabilities occur when an XML parser processes external entities within XML input, which can lead to unauthorized disclosure of confidential data, denial of service, or other impacts depending on the context. In this case, the vulnerability allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to send specially crafted XML input to the Jenkins REPO Plugin, which then processes the XML without disabling external entity resolution. This can lead to the exposure of sensitive information from the Jenkins server or the underlying host system. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 7.5, reflecting a high severity due to the vulnerability being remotely exploitable over the network without authentication or user interaction, and having a high impact on confidentiality. The integrity and availability impacts are rated as none. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-611 (Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference). There are no known exploits in the wild at the time of publication, and no official patch links are provided in the data, but it is expected that the Jenkins project will release or has released a fixed version that properly disables external entity processing in the XML parser used by the REPO Plugin.

For European organizations using Jenkins with the REPO Plugin, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to the confidentiality of sensitive data. Jenkins is widely used in software development and continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) pipelines, often handling source code, credentials, and other proprietary information. An attacker exploiting this vulnerability could gain access to sensitive internal files or configuration data, potentially leading to further compromise or intellectual property theft. Since the vulnerability does not require authentication or user interaction, it can be exploited remotely by unauthenticated attackers, increasing the risk of automated scanning and exploitation attempts. The impact is particularly critical for organizations with stringent data protection requirements under regulations such as GDPR, as unauthorized data disclosure could lead to compliance violations and reputational damage. Additionally, exposure of internal infrastructure details could facilitate subsequent targeted attacks. Although no known exploits are reported yet, the ease of exploitation and high confidentiality impact warrant immediate attention.

European organizations should prioritize upgrading the Jenkins REPO Plugin to a version that addresses CVE-2022-43415 as soon as a patch is available from the Jenkins project. Until a patch is applied, organizations should consider the following mitigations: 1) Restrict network access to Jenkins servers, limiting exposure to trusted internal networks or VPNs to reduce the attack surface. 2) Implement strict input validation and monitoring on Jenkins endpoints to detect and block suspicious XML payloads indicative of XXE attempts. 3) Review and harden Jenkins server configurations, including disabling unnecessary plugins and minimizing privileges of Jenkins service accounts. 4) Employ Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) with rules to detect and block XXE attack patterns targeting Jenkins. 5) Conduct regular security assessments and penetration tests focusing on CI/CD infrastructure to identify and remediate similar vulnerabilities. 6) Monitor Jenkins logs for unusual XML processing errors or access patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. These measures, combined with timely patching, will significantly reduce the risk posed by this vulnerability.