CVE-2017-7957: Xstream Denial of Service Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-7hwc-46rm-65jh
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CVSS 7.5
CWE-20
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2017-7957 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) denial of service vulnerability (CWE-20: Improper Input Validation) affecting Xstream libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves denial of service in xstream. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.4.10.

CVE-2017-7957 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2017-7957
GHSA Identifier GHSA-7hwc-46rm-65jh
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-20: Improper Input Validation
Affected Product Xstream
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:N/I:N/A:H).

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 None (C:N)
Integrity None (I:N)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2017-7957

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

com.thoughtworks.xstream:xstream fixed: 1.4.10 
<dependency>
    <groupId>com.thoughtworks.xstream</groupId>
    <artifactId>xstream</artifactId>
    <version>1.4.10</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=com.thoughtworks.xstream

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2017-7957, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=com.thoughtworks.xstream

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Xstream in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.4.10), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=com.thoughtworks.xstream 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-20: Improper Input Validation, where the product receives input or data, but it does not validate or incorrectly validates that the input has the properties that are required to process the data safely and correctly. In Xstream, 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

XStream through 1.4.9, when a certain denyTypes workaround is not used, mishandles attempts to create an instance of the primitive type 'void' during unmarshalling, leading to a remote application crash, as demonstrated by an xstream.fromXML("<void/>") call.

CVE-2017-7957 Affected Xstream Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
1.4.10
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
com.thoughtworks.xstream:xstream
maven/com.thoughtworks.xstream/xstream
Maven
< 1.4.10
1.4.10

References

NVD — CVE-2017-7957 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-7957
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/x-stream/xstream/commit/6e546ec366419158b1e393211be6d78ab9604ab
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/x-stream/xstream/commit/8542d02d9ac5d384c85f4b33d6c1888c53bd55d
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/x-stream/xstream/commit/b3570be2f39234e61f99f9a20640756ea71b1b4
access.redhat.com/errata/rhsa-2017:18... WEB
https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017:1832
access.redhat.com/errata/rhsa-2017:28... WEB
https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017:2888
access.redhat.com/errata/rhsa-2017:28... WEB
https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017:2889
exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/125... WEB
https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/125800
Xstream Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/x-stream/xstream
www-prd-trops.events.ibm.com/node/715749 WEB
https://www-prd-trops.events.ibm.com/node/715749
Xstream Security Information SECURITY
http://www.debian.org/security/2017/dsa-3841
Xstream Security Information SECURITY
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/100687
Xstream Security Information SECURITY
http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1039499
x-stream.github.io/cve-2017-7957.html WEB
http://x-stream.github.io/CVE-2017-7957.html

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2017-7957?
CVE-2017-7957 is a security vulnerability in Xstream involving Denial of service in XStream under CWE-20: Improper Input Validation.
Which Xstream versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 1.4.10 across affected packages: com.thoughtworks.xstream:xstream.
What version fixes CVE-2017-7957?
Upgrading to 1.4.10 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is xstream affected?
Yes, com.thoughtworks.xstream:xstream is affected in releases prior to 1.4.10. Upgrade your dependency to 1.4.10 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2017-7957?
CVE-2017-7957 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:N/I:N/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2017-7957?
CVE-2017-7957 is classified under CWE-20: Improper Input Validation (The product receives input or data, but it does not validate or incorrectly validates that the input has the properties that are required to process the data safely and correctly.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2017-7957?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=com.thoughtworks.xstream'. 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-7hwc-46rm-65jh",
  "modified" : "2025-05-23T19:00:16Z",
  "published" : "2020-06-30T22:48:24Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2017-7957" ],
  "summary" : "Denial of service in XStream",
  "details" : "XStream through 1.4.9, when a certain denyTypes workaround is not used, mishandles attempts to create an instance of the primitive type 'void' during unmarshalling, leading to a remote application crash, as demonstrated by an xstream.fromXML(\"<void/>\") call.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "com.thoughtworks.xstream:xstream"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.4.10"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-7957"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/x-stream/xstream/commit/6e546ec366419158b1e393211be6d78ab9604ab"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/x-stream/xstream/commit/8542d02d9ac5d384c85f4b33d6c1888c53bd55d"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/x-stream/xstream/commit/b3570be2f39234e61f99f9a20640756ea71b1b4"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017:1832"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017:2888"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017:2889"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/125800"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/x-stream/xstream"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www-prd-trops.events.ibm.com/node/715749"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://www.debian.org/security/2017/dsa-3841"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/100687"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1039499"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://x-stream.github.io/CVE-2017-7957.html"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-20" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2020-06-30T22:47:51Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2017-04-29T19:59:00Z"
  }
}