{"id":34220,"date":"2025-05-02T12:43:27","date_gmt":"2025-05-02T12:43:27","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2025-11-01T12:49:07","modified_gmt":"2025-11-01T18:49:07","slug":"cve-2025-3642-critical-remote-code-execution-vulnerability-in-moodle-lms-equella-repository","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2025-3642-critical-remote-code-execution-vulnerability-in-moodle-lms-equella-repository\/","title":{"rendered":"<strong>CVE-2025-3642: Critical Remote Code Execution Vulnerability in Moodle LMS EQUELLA Repository<\/strong>"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Overview<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>CVE-2025-3642 is a serious security vulnerability that affects Moodle&#8217;s EQUELLA repository. This flaw exposes users to a risk of remote code execution, which could potentially lead to system compromise or data leakage. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2025-28036-critical-vulnerability-in-totolink-a950rg-enables-remote-command-execution\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"40093\">vulnerability affects users who have the EQUELLA repository enabled<\/a>, which by default includes teachers and managers. Given the widespread use of Moodle, this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2024-13786-critical-php-object-injection-vulnerability-in-wordpress-education-theme\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"92073\">vulnerability could have far-reaching consequences for educational<\/a> institutions worldwide, highlighting the importance of maintaining up-to-date security practices.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Vulnerability Summary<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>CVE ID: CVE-2025-3642<br \/>\nSeverity: Critical (8.8 CVSS Score)<br \/>\nAttack Vector: Network<br \/>\nPrivileges Required: Low (default <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2025-46274-unauthenticated-access-to-managed-database-through-hard-coded-credentials-in-uni-nms-lite\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"41398\">access for teachers and managers<\/a>)<br \/>\nUser Interaction: Required<br \/>\nImpact: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2025-32849-vulnerability-in-telecontrol-server-basic-leads-to-potential-system-compromise\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"39361\">Potential system<\/a> compromise or data leakage<\/p>\n<p><strong>Affected Products<\/strong><\/p><div id=\"ameeb-869858509\" class=\"ameeb-content-2 ameeb-entity-placement\"><div style=\"border-left: 4px solid #555; padding-left: 20px; margin: 48px 0; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; color: #ffffff; line-height: 1.6; max-width: 700px;\">\r\n  <h2 style=\"margin-top: 0; font-size: 20px; font-weight: 600; display: flex; align-items: center;\">\r\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/chat\" style=\"display: inline-flex; align-items: center; margin-right: 8px;\">\r\n      <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Best-App-icon-Ameeba.png\" alt=\"Ameeba Chat Icon\" style=\"width: 40px; height: 40px;\" \/>\r\n    <\/a>\r\n    A new way to communicate\r\n  <\/h2>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"margin-bottom: 12px;\">\r\n    Ameeba Chat is built on encrypted identity, not personal profiles.\r\n  <\/p>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"margin-bottom: 16px;\">\r\n    Message, call, share files, and coordinate with identities kept separate.\r\n  <\/p>\r\n\r\n  <ul style=\"list-style: none; padding-left: 0; margin-bottom: 20px;\">\r\n    <li>\u2022 Encrypted identity<\/li>\r\n    <li>\u2022 Ameeba Chat authenticates access<\/li>\r\n    <li>\u2022 Aliases and categories<\/li>\r\n    <li>\u2022 End-to-end encrypted chat, calls, and files<\/li>\r\n    <li>\u2022 Secure notes for sensitive information<\/li>\r\n  <\/ul>\r\n\r\n  <p style=\"font-style: italic; font-weight: 600; margin-bottom: 24px;\">\r\n    Private communication, rethought.\r\n  <\/p>\r\n\r\n  <div style=\"display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; gap: 12px;\">\r\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/chat\/download\" style=\"background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; padding: 10px 20px; text-decoration: none; border-radius: 6px; font-weight: 500;\">Download Ameeba Chat<\/a>\r\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/chat\" style=\"border: 1px solid #ffffff; color: #ffffff; padding: 10px 20px; text-decoration: none; border-radius: 6px; font-weight: 500;\">Learn More<\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n<p>Product | Affected Versions<\/p>\n<p>Moodle | All versions with EQUELLA repository enabled<\/p>\n<p><strong>How the Exploit Works<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The exploit takes advantage of a flaw in the Moodle LMS EQUELLA repository that exposes the system to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2025-28034-remote-command-execution-vulnerability-in-totolink-wireless-routers\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"39458\">remote code execution<\/a>. An attacker with the necessary access privileges can inject malicious code into the system and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2025-28039-pre-auth-remote-command-execution-vulnerability-in-totolink-ex1200t\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"39506\">execute it remotely<\/a>. This could <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2025-32857-sql-injection-vulnerability-in-telecontrol-server-basic-leading-to-potential-system-compromise\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"39847\">potentially result in system<\/a> compromise or data leakage. The level of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2025-1568-critical-access-control-vulnerability-in-google-chromeos\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"40079\">access required to exploit this vulnerability<\/a> is low, as the EQUELLA repository is enabled by default for teachers and managers.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Conceptual Example Code<\/strong><\/p><div id=\"ameeb-1260459203\" class=\"ameeb-content ameeb-entity-placement\"><div class=\"poptin-embedded\" data-id=\"f6b387694f681\"><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<\/div>\n<p>The following conceptual example demonstrates how an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2025-3200-unauthenticated-remote-attacker-exploiting-insecure-tls-protocols\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"40764\">attacker might exploit<\/a> this vulnerability:<\/p>\n<pre><code class=\"\" data-line=\"\">POST \/moodle\/equella HTTP\/1.1\nHost: target.school.edu\nContent-Type: application\/json\n{ &quot;malicious_code&quot;: &quot;payload_that_exploits_CVE-2025-3642&quot; }<\/code><\/pre>\n<p>In this example, the attacker sends a POST request to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2024-40446-arbitrary-code-execution-vulnerability-in-forkosh-mime-tex\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"39846\">vulnerable EQUELLA<\/a> endpoint with a JSON payload containing the malicious code. If the exploit is successful, the attacker could potentially gain control over the system or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/doge-s-access-to-federal-data-raises-cybersecurity-concerns\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"39360\">access sensitive data<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Mitigation and Recommendations<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The first and most <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2025-4954-critical-file-upload-vulnerability-in-axle-demo-importer-wordpress-plugin\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"60711\">important step in mitigating this vulnerability<\/a> is to apply the vendor-provided patch as soon as it becomes available. As a temporary measure, a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) can be utilized to detect and prevent exploitation attempts.<br \/>\nFurthermore, organizations should consider disabling the EQUELLA repository if it is not required, or restrict its use to trusted and necessary personnel only. Regular security audits and penetration testing can also help in identifying and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/cve-2025-4335-privilege-escalation-vulnerability-in-woocommerce-multiple-addresses-plugin-for-wordpress\/\"  data-wpil-monitor-id=\"43747\">addressing similar vulnerabilities<\/a> in the future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Overview CVE-2025-3642 is a serious security vulnerability that affects Moodle&#8217;s EQUELLA repository. This flaw exposes users to a risk of remote code execution, which could potentially lead to system compromise or data leakage. The vulnerability affects users who have the EQUELLA repository enabled, which by default includes teachers and managers. Given the widespread use of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"vendor":[],"product":[],"attack_vector":[80],"asset_type":[],"severity":[],"exploit_status":[],"class_list":["post-34220","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","attack_vector-rce"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34220","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34220"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34220\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":85280,"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34220\/revisions\/85280"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34220"},{"taxonomy":"vendor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/vendor?post=34220"},{"taxonomy":"product","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product?post=34220"},{"taxonomy":"attack_vector","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/attack_vector?post=34220"},{"taxonomy":"asset_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/asset_type?post=34220"},{"taxonomy":"severity","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/severity?post=34220"},{"taxonomy":"exploit_status","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ameeba.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/exploit_status?post=34220"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}