Critical template Injection flaw in LaRecipe Documentation Package enables remote code execution
Take action: If you're using LaRecipe PHP documentation package, it's time to update. Isolation of the web application may help but usually these systems are built to have a lot of users. So don't delay, patch to version 2.8.1 or later. Aheck your access logs for exploitation attempts and consider adding a Web Application Firewall (WAF) for additional protection.
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A critical security vulnerability is reported in LaRecipe, a PHP documentation package, that enables attackers to execute arbitrary code on vulnerable servers through Server-Side Template Injection (SSTI) attacks.
The vulnerability is tracked as CVE-2025-53833 (CVSS score 10.0) and is caused by weaknesses in LaRecipe's template processing mechanism where user-controlled data is embedded into template engines without adequate validation or sanitization. Attackers can craft malicious payloads containing template syntax. When processed by the vulnerable LaRecipe installation the injection results in code execution with the privileges of the web server process.
The attack requires minimal technical expertise, as standard SSTI payloads can be adapted to target the template engine implementation used by LaRecipe. Typical examples of such SSTI payloads are:
// Basic payload detection {{7*7}}
// File reading attempt {{'/etc/passwd'|file_excerpt(1,30)}}
// System command execution {{_self.env.registerUndefinedFilterCallback("exec")}}{{_self.env.getFilter("whoami")}}// Basic PHP code execution
<?php system('whoami'); ?>
// Environment variable access
<?php echo getenv('DB_PASSWORD'); ?>// Execute system commands (synthax varies from template engine to template engine)
{{app.request.server.get('HTTP_HOST')|split('.')|first|upper}}
{{_self.env.registerUndefinedFilterCallback("system")}}
{{_self.env.getFilter("id")}}Users should immediately upgrade to LaRecipe version 2.8.1 or later, which contains patches addressing the SSTI vulnerability. System administrators should conduct thorough security audits of LaRecipe installations, reviewing access logs for potential exploitation attempts and implementing additional security measures such as Web Application Firewalls (WAF) and input validation layers.
