CVE-2020-35217: Vertx web Cross-Site Request Forgery Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-9q69-g5gc-9fgf
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CVSS 8.8
CWE-352
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-35217 is a HIGH (CVSS 8.8) cross-site request forgery vulnerability (CWE-352: Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF)) affecting Vertx web libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves cross-site request forgery in vert.x-web framework. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 4.0.0-milestone5.

CVE-2020-35217 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-35217
GHSA Identifier GHSA-9q69-g5gc-9fgf
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 8.8
CWE Classification CWE-352: Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF)
Affected Product Vertx web
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 8.8

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:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

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

How to Fix CVE-2020-35217

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

io.vertx:vertx-web fixed: 4.0.0-milestone5 
<dependency>
    <groupId>io.vertx</groupId>
    <artifactId>vertx-web</artifactId>
    <version>4.0.0-milestone5</version>
</dependency>
io.vertx:vertx-web fixed: 4.0.0-milestone5 
<dependency>
    <groupId>io.vertx</groupId>
    <artifactId>vertx-web</artifactId>
    <version>4.0.0-milestone5</version>
</dependency>
io.vertx:vertx-web fixed: 4.0.0-milestone5 
<dependency>
    <groupId>io.vertx</groupId>
    <artifactId>vertx-web</artifactId>
    <version>4.0.0-milestone5</version>
</dependency>
io.vertx:vertx-web fixed: 4.0.0-milestone5 
<dependency>
    <groupId>io.vertx</groupId>
    <artifactId>vertx-web</artifactId>
    <version>4.0.0-milestone5</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=io.vertx

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2020-35217, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.vertx

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Vertx web in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 4.0.0-milestone5), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.vertx 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-352: Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF), where the web application does not, or cannot, sufficiently verify whether a request was intentionally provided by the user who sent the request, which could have originated from an unauthorized actor. In Vertx web, 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

Vert.x-Web framework v4.0 milestone 1-4 does not perform a correct CSRF verification. Instead of comparing the CSRF token in the request with the CSRF token in the cookie, it compares the CSRF token in the cookie against a CSRF token that is stored in the session. An attacker does not even need to provide a CSRF token in the request because the framework does not consider it. The cookies are automatically sent by the browser and the verification will always succeed, leading to a successful CSRF attack.

CVE-2020-35217 Affected Vertx web Versions

4 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
4.0.0-milestone5
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
io.vertx:vertx-web
maven/io.vertx/vertx-web
Maven
≥ 4.0.0-milestone1
< 4.0.0-milestone5
All 1 versions
4.0.0-milestone1
4.0.0-milestone5
io.vertx:vertx-web
maven/io.vertx/vertx-web
Maven
≥ 4.0.0-milestone2
< 4.0.0-milestone5
All 1 versions
4.0.0-milestone2
4.0.0-milestone5
io.vertx:vertx-web
maven/io.vertx/vertx-web
Maven
≥ 4.0.0-milestone3
< 4.0.0-milestone5
All 1 versions
4.0.0-milestone3
4.0.0-milestone5
io.vertx:vertx-web
maven/io.vertx/vertx-web
Maven
≥ 4.0.0-milestone4
< 4.0.0-milestone5
All 1 versions
4.0.0-milestone4
4.0.0-milestone5

References

NVD — CVE-2020-35217 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-35217
Vertx web Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/vert-x3/vertx-web/pull/1613

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-35217?
CVE-2020-35217 is a security vulnerability in Vertx web involving Cross-Site Request Forgery in Vert.x-Web framework under CWE-352: Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF).
Which Vertx web versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 4.0.0-milestone5 across affected packages: io.vertx:vertx-web.
What version fixes CVE-2020-35217?
Upgrading to 4.0.0-milestone5 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is vertx-web affected?
Yes, io.vertx:vertx-web is affected in releases prior to 4.0.0-milestone5. Upgrade your dependency to 4.0.0-milestone5 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-35217?
CVE-2020-35217 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.8 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2020-35217?
CVE-2020-35217 is classified under CWE-352: Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) (The web application does not, or cannot, sufficiently verify whether a request was intentionally provided by the user who sent the request, which could have originated from an unauthorized actor.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2020-35217?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.vertx'. 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-9q69-g5gc-9fgf",
  "modified" : "2021-04-20T17:07:06Z",
  "published" : "2021-04-22T16:16:18Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-35217" ],
  "summary" : "Cross-Site Request Forgery in Vert.x-Web framework",
  "details" : "Vert.x-Web framework v4.0 milestone 1-4 does not perform a correct CSRF verification. Instead of comparing the CSRF token in the request with the CSRF token in the cookie, it compares the CSRF token in the cookie against a CSRF token that is stored in the session. An attacker does not even need to provide a CSRF token in the request because the framework does not consider it. The cookies are automatically sent by the browser and the verification will always succeed, leading to a successful CSRF attack.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "io.vertx:vertx-web"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "4.0.0-milestone1"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "4.0.0-milestone5"
      } ]
    } ],
    "versions" : [ "4.0.0-milestone1" ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "io.vertx:vertx-web"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "4.0.0-milestone2"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "4.0.0-milestone5"
      } ]
    } ],
    "versions" : [ "4.0.0-milestone2" ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "io.vertx:vertx-web"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "4.0.0-milestone3"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "4.0.0-milestone5"
      } ]
    } ],
    "versions" : [ "4.0.0-milestone3" ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "io.vertx:vertx-web"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "4.0.0-milestone4"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "4.0.0-milestone5"
      } ]
    } ],
    "versions" : [ "4.0.0-milestone4" ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-35217"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/vert-x3/vertx-web/pull/1613"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-352" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2021-04-20T17:07:06Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2021-01-20T13:15:00Z"
  }
}