CVE-2025-56795 is a critical security vulnerability identified in Mealie, an open-source recipe management application, specifically affecting version 3.0.1 and earlier. The vulnerability is a Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) flaw classified under CWE-79. It arises from improper sanitization of user-supplied input in the "note" and "text" fields submitted to the "/api/recipes/{recipe_name}" endpoint. This input is stored and later rendered in the frontend without adequate escaping or encoding, allowing malicious actors to inject persistent JavaScript code. When a victim views the affected recipe, the malicious script executes in their browser context, potentially leading to session hijacking, credential theft, or unauthorized actions performed on behalf of the user. The CVSS 3.1 base score is 9.0 (critical), with an attack vector of network (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), requiring privileges (PR:L) and user interaction (UI:R), and impacting confidentiality, integrity, and availability (C:H/I:H/A:H). Although exploitation requires authenticated access and user interaction, the scope is changed (S:C), meaning the vulnerability can affect resources beyond the initially compromised component. No public exploits are currently known, but the severity and ease of exploitation make it a significant threat. The absence of patches at the time of reporting necessitates immediate mitigation efforts. This vulnerability can be leveraged by attackers to compromise user accounts, steal sensitive data, or disrupt service availability within organizations using Mealie for recipe management or similar applications.

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2025-56795 can be substantial. The vulnerability allows attackers to execute arbitrary scripts in the context of authenticated users, potentially leading to theft of sensitive information such as user credentials or session tokens. This can result in unauthorized access to internal systems or data breaches. The ability to manipulate the application interface or perform actions on behalf of users threatens data integrity and can disrupt normal operations, affecting availability. Organizations relying on Mealie for collaborative recipe management or other internal workflows may face operational disruptions or reputational damage if exploited. Given the critical CVSS score and the persistent nature of the XSS, attackers could maintain long-term access or pivot to other internal resources. The requirement for authentication limits exposure to internal or trusted users, but insider threats or compromised accounts increase risk. European data protection regulations such as GDPR impose strict requirements on data security, and exploitation of this vulnerability could lead to regulatory penalties and loss of customer trust.

To mitigate CVE-2025-56795, European organizations should take the following specific actions: 1) Monitor Mealie project channels for official patches and apply them promptly once released. 2) Implement strict input validation on the server side to sanitize and whitelist acceptable characters in the "note" and "text" fields before storage. 3) Apply proper output encoding/escaping in the frontend to neutralize any injected scripts when rendering user-generated content. 4) Restrict access to the "/api/recipes/{recipe_name}" endpoint to only trusted and necessary users, minimizing the attack surface. 5) Employ Content Security Policy (CSP) headers to limit the execution of unauthorized scripts in browsers. 6) Conduct regular security awareness training for users to recognize and report suspicious activity. 7) Use Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) with rules designed to detect and block XSS payloads targeting this endpoint. 8) Audit user privileges and enforce the principle of least privilege to reduce the impact of compromised accounts. 9) Monitor logs for unusual API usage patterns or repeated failed attempts to inject scripts. 10) Consider isolating or sandboxing the application environment to contain potential exploitation effects.