CVE-2017-7675: Apache Tomcat Improper Limitation Of A Pathname Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-68g5-8q7f-m384
Share
CVSS 7.5
CWE-22
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2017-7675 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) improper limitation of a pathname vulnerability (CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')) affecting Apache Tomcat libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves improper limitation of a pathname to a restricted directory in apache tomcat. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 9.0.0.M22, 8.5.16.

CVE-2017-7675 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2017-7675
GHSA Identifier GHSA-68g5-8q7f-m384
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
Affected Product Apache Tomcat
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:3.0/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-2017-7675

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Apache Tomcat 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.tomcat:tomcat fixed: 9.0.0.M22 
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.apache.tomcat</groupId>
    <artifactId>tomcat</artifactId>
    <version>9.0.0.M22</version>
</dependency>
org.apache.tomcat:tomcat fixed: 8.5.16 
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.apache.tomcat</groupId>
    <artifactId>tomcat</artifactId>
    <version>8.5.16</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.tomcat

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2017-7675, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

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

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Apache Tomcat in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 9.0.0.M22), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.apache.tomcat 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-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal'), where the product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory. In Apache Tomcat, 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

The HTTP/2 implementation in Apache Tomcat 9.0.0.M1 to 9.0.0.M21 and 8.5.0 to 8.5.15 bypassed a number of security checks that prevented directory traversal attacks. It was therefore possible to bypass security constraints using a specially crafted URL.

CVE-2017-7675 Affected Apache Tomcat Versions

2 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
9.0.0.M228.5.16
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
org.apache.tomcat:tomcat
maven/org.apache.tomcat/tomcat
Maven
≥ 9.0.0.M1
< 9.0.0.M22
9.0.0.M22
org.apache.tomcat:tomcat
maven/org.apache.tomcat/tomcat
Maven
≥ 8.5.0
< 8.5.16
8.5.16

References

NVD — CVE-2017-7675 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-7675
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/apache/tomcat/commit/cf181edc9a8c239cde704cffc3c503425bdcae2b
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/apache/tomcat/commit/dacb030b85fe0e0b3da87469e23d0f31252fdede
lists.apache.org/thread.html/b5e3f51... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/b5e3f51d28cd5d9b1809f56594f2cf63dcd6a90429e16ea9f83bbedc@%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/d3a5818... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/d3a5818e8af731bde6a05ef031ed3acc093c6dd7c4bfcc4936eafd6c%40%3Cannounce.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/d3a5818... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/d3a5818e8af731bde6a05ef031ed3acc093c6dd7c4bfcc4936eafd6c@%3Cannounce.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/e85e83e... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/e85e83e9954f169bbb77b44baae5a33d8de878df557bb32b7f793661%40%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/e85e83e... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/e85e83e9954f169bbb77b44baae5a33d8de878df557bb32b7f793661@%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/eb6efa8... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/eb6efa8d59c45a7a9eff94c4b925467d3b3fec8ba7697f3daa314b04%40%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/eb6efa8... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/eb6efa8d59c45a7a9eff94c4b925467d3b3fec8ba7697f3daa314b04@%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/r3bbb80... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r3bbb800a816d0a51eccc5a228c58736960a9fffafa581a225834d97d%40%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/r3bbb80... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r3bbb800a816d0a51eccc5a228c58736960a9fffafa581a225834d97d@%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/r48c144... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r48c1444845fe15a823e1374674bfc297d5008a5453788099ea14caf0%40%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/r48c144... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r48c1444845fe15a823e1374674bfc297d5008a5453788099ea14caf0@%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
Apache Tomcat Security Information SECURITY
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20180614-0003
svn.apache.org/viewvc WEB
https://svn.apache.org/viewvc?view=revision&revision=1796090
Apache Tomcat Security Information SECURITY
https://web.archive.org/web/20170929163331/http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/100256
lists.apache.org/thread.html/b5e3f51... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/b5e3f51d28cd5d9b1809f56594f2cf63dcd6a90429e16ea9f83bbedc%40%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/8885587... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/88855876c33f2f9c532ffb75bfee570ccf0b17ffa77493745af9a17a@%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/8885587... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/88855876c33f2f9c532ffb75bfee570ccf0b17ffa77493745af9a17a%40%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/6af4712... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/6af47120905aa7d8fe12f42e8ff2284fb338ba141d3b77b8c7cb61b3@%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/6af4712... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/6af47120905aa7d8fe12f42e8ff2284fb338ba141d3b77b8c7cb61b3%40%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/5f8ab8a... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/5f8ab8a02f3610bd56ea2b0d69af25cbde451d79c46276c350e05a15@%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/5f8ab8a... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/5f8ab8a02f3610bd56ea2b0d69af25cbde451d79c46276c350e05a15%40%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/5c0e00f... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/5c0e00fd31efc11e147bf99d0f03c00a734447d3b131ab0818644cdb@%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/5c0e00f... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/5c0e00fd31efc11e147bf99d0f03c00a734447d3b131ab0818644cdb%40%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/343558d... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/343558d982879bf88ec20dbf707f8c11255f8e219e81d45c4f8d0551@%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/343558d... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/343558d982879bf88ec20dbf707f8c11255f8e219e81d45c4f8d0551%40%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/1dd0a59... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/1dd0a59c1295cc08ce4c9e7edae5ad2268acc9ba55adcefa0532e5ba@%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/1dd0a59... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/1dd0a59c1295cc08ce4c9e7edae5ad2268acc9ba55adcefa0532e5ba%40%3Cdev.tomcat.apache.org%3E
Apache Tomcat Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/apache/tomcat
bz.apache.org/bugzilla/show_bug.c... WEB
https://bz.apache.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=61120
Apache Tomcat Security Information SECURITY
http://www.debian.org/security/2017/dsa-3974

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2017-7675?
CVE-2017-7675 is a security vulnerability in Apache Tomcat involving Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory in Apache Tomcat under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal').
Which Apache Tomcat versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 9.0.0.M22, 8.5.16 across affected packages: org.apache.tomcat:tomcat.
What version fixes CVE-2017-7675?
Upgrading to 9.0.0.M22, 8.5.16 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is tomcat affected?
Yes, org.apache.tomcat:tomcat is affected in releases prior to 9.0.0.M22, 8.5.16. Upgrade your dependency to 9.0.0.M22, 8.5.16 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2017-7675?
CVE-2017-7675 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2017-7675?
CVE-2017-7675 is classified under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') (The product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2017-7675?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.apache.tomcat'. 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-68g5-8q7f-m384",
  "modified" : "2022-06-30T21:21:47Z",
  "published" : "2022-05-14T00:58:29Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2017-7675" ],
  "summary" : "Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory in Apache Tomcat",
  "details" : "The HTTP/2 implementation in Apache Tomcat 9.0.0.M1 to 9.0.0.M21 and 8.5.0 to 8.5.15 bypassed a number of security checks that prevented directory traversal attacks. It was therefore possible to bypass security constraints using a specially crafted URL.",
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  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-22" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2022-06-30T21:21:47Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2017-08-11T02:29:00Z"
  }
}