CVE-2026-61570: MPXJ XXE Vulnerability Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-5vvx-3h34-f3gj
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CVSS 7.5
CWE-611
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-61570 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) xxe vulnerability vulnerability (CWE-611: Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference) affecting MPXJ libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves xxe vulnerability in merlinreader. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 16.4.1.

CVE-2026-61570 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-61570
GHSA Identifier GHSA-5vvx-3h34-f3gj
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-611: Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference
Affected Product MPXJ
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.5

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

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

How to Fix CVE-2026-61570

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

net.sf.mpxj:mpxj fixed: 16.4.1 
<dependency>
    <groupId>net.sf.mpxj</groupId>
    <artifactId>mpxj</artifactId>
    <version>16.4.1</version>
</dependency>
mpxj fixed: 16.4.1 
Upgrade mpxj to 16.4.1
MPXJ.Net fixed: 16.4.1 
Upgrade MPXJ.Net to 16.4.1
net.sf.mpxj fixed: 16.4.1 
Upgrade net.sf.mpxj to 16.4.1
net.sf.mpxj-for-csharp fixed: 16.4.1 
Upgrade net.sf.mpxj-for-csharp to 16.4.1
net.sf.mpxj-for-vb fixed: 16.4.1 
Upgrade net.sf.mpxj-for-vb to 16.4.1
mpxj fixed: 16.4.1 
pip install mpxj>=16.4.1
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=net.sf.mpxj

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2026-61570, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=net.sf.mpxj

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of MPXJ in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 16.4.1), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=net.sf.mpxj 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-611: Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference, where the product processes an xml document that can contain xml entities with uris that resolve to documents outside of the intended sphere of control, causing the product to embed incorrect documents into its output. In MPXJ, 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

### Impact MPXJ used the default configuration when creating a DocumentBuilder instance, which leaves doctype declarations enabled, when parsing the XML content of the ZTIMEINTERVALS column from a Merlin project SQLite file. This would allow a carefully crafted XML payload to read an arbitrary file. However, although an arbitrary file can be read, the way the resulting parsed XML is processed by MPXJ means that the data it contains is unlikely to be available for exfiltration. ### Patches The patch is included in MPXJ 16.4.1 ### Workarounds Potential workarounds include: * Avoid reading Merlin project files with MPXJ * Only accept Merlin project files from trusted sources * Preprocess Merlin SQLite databases to strip doctype declarations from the ZTIMEINTERVALS column

CVE-2026-61570 Affected MPXJ Versions

7 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
16.4.1
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
net.sf.mpxj:mpxj
maven/net.sf.mpxj/mpxj
Maven
≥ 5.5.5
< 16.4.1
16.4.1
mpxj
gem/mpxj
RubyGems
≥ 5.5.5
< 16.4.1
16.4.1
MPXJ.Net
nuget/MPXJ.Net
NuGet
≥ 5.5.5
< 16.4.1
16.4.1
net.sf.mpxj
nuget/net.sf.mpxj
NuGet
≥ 5.5.5
< 16.4.1
16.4.1
net.sf.mpxj-for-csharp
nuget/net.sf.mpxj-for-csharp
NuGet
≥ 5.5.5
< 16.4.1
16.4.1
net.sf.mpxj-for-vb
nuget/net.sf.mpxj-for-vb
NuGet
≥ 5.5.5
< 16.4.1
16.4.1
mpxj
pypi/mpxj
PyPI
≥ 5.5.5
< 16.4.1
16.4.1

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/joniles/mpxj/security/advisories/GHSA-5vvx-3h34-f3gj
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/joniles/mpxj/commit/6e8288bc4d1cd62842af298004dc74fe66fb0805
MPXJ Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/joniles/mpxj
MPXJ Release RELEASE
https://github.com/joniles/mpxj/releases/tag/v16.4.1

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-61570?
CVE-2026-61570 is a security vulnerability in MPXJ involving XXE Vulnerability in MerlinReader under CWE-611: Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference.
Which MPXJ versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 16.4.1 across affected packages: net.sf.mpxj:mpxj, mpxj, MPXJ.Net, net.sf.mpxj, net.sf.mpxj-for-csharp, net.sf.mpxj-for-vb.
What version fixes CVE-2026-61570?
Upgrading to 16.4.1 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is mpxj affected?
Yes, net.sf.mpxj:mpxj is affected in releases prior to 16.4.1. Upgrade your dependency to 16.4.1 or later.
Is MPXJ.Net affected?
Yes, MPXJ.Net is affected in releases prior to 16.4.1. Upgrade your dependency to 16.4.1 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-61570?
CVE-2026-61570 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-61570?
CVE-2026-61570 is classified under CWE-611: Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference (The product processes an XML document that can contain XML entities with URIs that resolve to documents outside of the intended sphere of control, causing the product to embed incorrect documents into its output.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2026-61570?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=net.sf.mpxj'. 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-5vvx-3h34-f3gj",
  "modified" : "2026-09-22T20:34:25Z",
  "published" : "2026-09-22T20:34:25Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2026-61570" ],
  "summary" : "MPXJ: XXE Vulnerability in MerlinReader",
  "details" : "### Impact\nMPXJ used the default configuration when creating a DocumentBuilder instance, which leaves doctype declarations enabled, when parsing the XML content of the ZTIMEINTERVALS column from a Merlin project SQLite file. This would allow a carefully crafted XML payload to read an arbitrary file. However, although an arbitrary file can be read, the way the resulting parsed XML is processed by MPXJ means that the data it contains is unlikely to be available for exfiltration.\n\n### Patches\nThe patch is included in MPXJ 16.4.1\n\n### Workarounds\nPotential workarounds include:\n* Avoid reading Merlin project files with MPXJ\n* Only accept Merlin project files from trusted sources\n* Preprocess Merlin SQLite databases to strip doctype declarations from the ZTIMEINTERVALS column",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
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    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "NuGet",
      "name" : "MPXJ.Net"
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  }, {
    "package" : {
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    },
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  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "NuGet",
      "name" : "net.sf.mpxj-for-vb"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
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    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "mpxj"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "5.5.5"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "16.4.1"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/joniles/mpxj/security/advisories/GHSA-5vvx-3h34-f3gj"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/joniles/mpxj/commit/6e8288bc4d1cd62842af298004dc74fe66fb0805"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/joniles/mpxj"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/joniles/mpxj/releases/tag/v16.4.1"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-611" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-09-22T20:34:25Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}