CVE-2020-25689: Wildfly dist Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-97hp-6q9g-5cw2
Share
CVSS 6.5
CWE-400 CWE-401
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-25689 is a MODERATE (CVSS 6.5) remote code execution vulnerability (CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption) affecting Wildfly dist libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves uncontrolled resource consumption in wildfly. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 21.0.1.

CVE-2020-25689 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-25689
GHSA Identifier GHSA-97hp-6q9g-5cw2
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 6.5
CWE Classification CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption
Affected Product Wildfly dist
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 6.5

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

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required Low (PR:L)
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-2020-25689

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Wildfly dist 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.wildfly:wildfly-dist fixed: 21.0.1 
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.wildfly</groupId>
    <artifactId>wildfly-dist</artifactId>
    <version>21.0.1</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.wildfly

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2020-25689, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.wildfly

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Wildfly dist in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 21.0.1), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.wildfly 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-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption, where the product does not properly control the allocation and maintenance of a limited resource. In Wildfly dist, 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 memory leak flaw was found in WildFly in all versions up to 21.0.0.Final, where host-controller tries to reconnect in a loop, generating new connections which are not properly closed while not able to connect to domain-controller. This flaw allows an attacker to cause an Out of memory (OOM) issue, leading to a denial of service. The highest threat from this vulnerability is to system availability.

CVE-2020-25689 Affected Wildfly dist Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
21.0.1
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
org.wildfly:wildfly-dist
maven/org.wildfly/wildfly-dist
Maven
< 21.0.1
21.0.1

References

NVD — CVE-2020-25689 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-25689
bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi WEB
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=CVE-2020-25689
Wildfly dist Security Information SECURITY
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20201123-0006

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-25689?
CVE-2020-25689 is a security vulnerability in Wildfly dist involving Uncontrolled Resource Consumption in WildFly under CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption.
Which Wildfly dist versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 21.0.1 across affected packages: org.wildfly:wildfly-dist.
What version fixes CVE-2020-25689?
Upgrading to 21.0.1 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is wildfly-dist affected?
Yes, org.wildfly:wildfly-dist is affected in releases prior to 21.0.1. Upgrade your dependency to 21.0.1 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-25689?
CVE-2020-25689 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 6.5 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2020-25689?
CVE-2020-25689 is classified under CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption (The product does not properly control the allocation and maintenance of a limited resource.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2020-25689?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.wildfly'. 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-97hp-6q9g-5cw2",
  "modified" : "2022-06-23T18:05:24Z",
  "published" : "2022-05-24T17:32:58Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-25689" ],
  "summary" : "Uncontrolled Resource Consumption in WildFly",
  "details" : "A memory leak flaw was found in WildFly in all versions up to 21.0.0.Final, where host-controller tries to reconnect in a loop, generating new connections which are not properly closed while not able to connect to domain-controller. This flaw allows an attacker to cause an Out of memory (OOM) issue, leading to a denial of service. The highest threat from this vulnerability is to system availability.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "org.wildfly:wildfly-dist"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "21.0.1"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 21.0.0"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-25689"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=CVE-2020-25689"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20201123-0006"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-400", "CWE-401" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2022-06-23T18:05:24Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2020-11-02T21:15:00Z"
  }
}