CVE-2020-1951: Tika Infinite Loop Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-3264-3fm9-fg44
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CVSS 5.5
CWE-835
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-1951 is a MODERATE (CVSS 5.5) infinite loop vulnerability (CWE-835: Loop with Unreachable Exit Condition ('Infinite Loop')) affecting Tika libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves infinite loop in apache tika. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.24.

CVE-2020-1951 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-1951
GHSA Identifier GHSA-3264-3fm9-fg44
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 5.5
CWE Classification CWE-835: Loop with Unreachable Exit Condition ('Infinite Loop')
Affected Product Tika
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 5.5

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H).

Attack Vector Local (AV:L)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction Required (UI:R)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality None (C:N)
Integrity None (I:N)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2020-1951

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Tika dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

org.apache.tika:tika fixed: 1.24 
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.apache.tika</groupId>
    <artifactId>tika</artifactId>
    <version>1.24</version>
</dependency>
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.apache.tika

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2020-1951, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.apache.tika

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Tika in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.24), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.apache.tika command inspects the resolved dependency graph declared in your project's POM files; it does not perform automated security scanning or inspect runtime dynamic classpaths. Always verify runtime container classpaths and shaded JARs.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-835: Loop with Unreachable Exit Condition ('Infinite Loop'), where the product contains an iteration or loop with an exit condition that cannot be reached, i.e., an infinite loop. In Tika, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

A carefully crafted or corrupt PSD file can cause an infinite loop in Apache Tika's PSDParser in versions 1.0-1.23.

CVE-2020-1951 Affected Tika Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
1.24
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
org.apache.tika:tika
maven/org.apache.tika/tika
Maven
≥ 1.0
< 1.24
1.24

References

NVD — CVE-2020-1951 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-1951
Tika Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/apache/tika
lists.apache.org/thread.html/rd8c1b4... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/rd8c1b42bd0e31870d804890b3f00b13d837c528f7ebaf77031323172%40%3Cdev.tika.apache.org%3E
lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce... WEB
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/03/msg00035.html
usn.ubuntu.com/4564-1 WEB
https://usn.ubuntu.com/4564-1
Tika Security Information SECURITY
https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpujul2020.html
Tika Security Information SECURITY
https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpuoct2020.html

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-1951?
CVE-2020-1951 is a security vulnerability in Tika involving Infinite Loop in Apache Tika under CWE-835: Loop with Unreachable Exit Condition ('Infinite Loop').
Which Tika versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 1.24 across affected packages: org.apache.tika:tika.
What version fixes CVE-2020-1951?
Upgrading to 1.24 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is tika affected?
Yes, org.apache.tika:tika is affected in releases prior to 1.24. Upgrade your dependency to 1.24 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-1951?
CVE-2020-1951 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 5.5 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2020-1951?
CVE-2020-1951 is classified under CWE-835: Loop with Unreachable Exit Condition ('Infinite Loop') (The product contains an iteration or loop with an exit condition that cannot be reached, i.e., an infinite loop.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2020-1951?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.apache.tika'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-3264-3fm9-fg44",
  "modified" : "2022-10-07T20:40:10Z",
  "published" : "2021-05-07T15:54:00Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-1951" ],
  "summary" : "Infinite Loop in Apache Tika",
  "details" : "A carefully crafted or corrupt PSD file can cause an infinite loop in Apache Tika's PSDParser in versions 1.0-1.23.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "org.apache.tika:tika"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "1.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.24"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 1.23"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-1951"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/apache/tika"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/rd8c1b42bd0e31870d804890b3f00b13d837c528f7ebaf77031323172%40%3Cdev.tika.apache.org%3E"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/03/msg00035.html"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://usn.ubuntu.com/4564-1"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpujul2020.html"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpuoct2020.html"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-835" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2021-05-05T22:47:57Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2020-03-23T14:15:00Z"
  }
}