CVE-2019-17640: Vertx web Path Traversal Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-vjw7-6gfq-6wf5
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-23 CWE-22
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2019-17640 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) path traversal vulnerability (CWE-23: Relative Path Traversal) affecting Vertx web libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves path traversal in eclipse vert. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 3.9.4.

CVE-2019-17640 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2019-17640
GHSA Identifier GHSA-vjw7-6gfq-6wf5
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-23: Relative Path Traversal
Affected Product Vertx web
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 9.8

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:N/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 None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2019-17640

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: 3.9.4 
<dependency>
    <groupId>io.vertx</groupId>
    <artifactId>vertx-web</artifactId>
    <version>3.9.4</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-2019-17640, 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 3.9.4), 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-23: Relative Path Traversal, where the product uses external input to construct a pathname that should be within a restricted directory, but it does not properly neutralize sequences such as ".." that can resolve to a location that is outside of that directory. 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

In Eclipse Vert.x 3.4.x up to 3.9.4, 4.0.0-milestone1, 4.0.0-milestone2, 4.0.0-milestone3, 4.0.0-milestone4, 4.0.0-milestone5, 4.0.0.Beta1, 4.0.0.Beta2, and 4.0.0.Beta3, StaticHandler doesn't correctly processes back slashes on Windows Operating systems, allowing, escape the webroot folder to the current working directory.

CVE-2019-17640 Affected Vertx web Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
3.9.4
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
io.vertx:vertx-web
maven/io.vertx/vertx-web
Maven
≥ 3.0.0
< 3.9.4
3.9.4

References

NVD — CVE-2019-17640 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-17640
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/vert-x3/vertx-web/commit/b12f7c4c6576a8adc3f683b2899de4b0e7d099e4
bugs.eclipse.org/bugs/show_bug.cgi WEB
https://bugs.eclipse.org/bugs/show_bug.cgi?id=567416
lists.apache.org/thread.html/r591f69... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r591f6932560c8c46cee87415afed92924a982189fea7f7c9096f8e33@%3Ccommits.pulsar.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/r8383b5... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r8383b5e7344a8b872e430ad72241b84b83e9701d275c602cfe34a941@%3Ccommits.servicecomb.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/r8d863b... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r8d863b148efe778ce5f8f961d0cafeda399e681d3f0656233b4c5511@%3Ccommits.pulsar.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/rd0e44e... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/rd0e44e8ef71eeaaa3cf3d1b8b41eb25894372e2995ec908ce7624d26@%3Ccommits.pulsar.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/rfd0ebf... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/rfd0ebf8387cfd0b959d1e218797e709793cce51a5ea2f84d0976f47d@%3Ccommits.pulsar.apache.org%3E
mvnrepository.com/artifact/io.vertx/v... WEB
https://mvnrepository.com/artifact/io.vertx/vertx-web

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2019-17640?
CVE-2019-17640 is a security vulnerability in Vertx web involving Path Traversal in Eclipse Vert under CWE-23: Relative Path Traversal.
Which Vertx web versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 3.9.4 across affected packages: io.vertx:vertx-web.
What version fixes CVE-2019-17640?
Upgrading to 3.9.4 (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 3.9.4. Upgrade your dependency to 3.9.4 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2019-17640?
CVE-2019-17640 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (CRITICAL) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2019-17640?
CVE-2019-17640 is classified under CWE-23: Relative Path Traversal (The product uses external input to construct a pathname that should be within a restricted directory, but it does not properly neutralize sequences such as ".." that can resolve to a location that is outside of that directory.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2019-17640?
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-vjw7-6gfq-6wf5",
  "modified" : "2021-04-22T22:08:15Z",
  "published" : "2022-02-10T20:28:57Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2019-17640" ],
  "summary" : "Path Traversal in Eclipse Vert",
  "details" : "In Eclipse Vert.x 3.4.x up to 3.9.4, 4.0.0-milestone1, 4.0.0-milestone2, 4.0.0-milestone3, 4.0.0-milestone4, 4.0.0-milestone5, 4.0.0.Beta1, 4.0.0.Beta2, and 4.0.0.Beta3, StaticHandler doesn't correctly processes back slashes on Windows Operating systems, allowing, escape the webroot folder to the current working directory.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "io.vertx:vertx-web"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "3.0.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "3.9.4"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-17640"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/vert-x3/vertx-web/commit/b12f7c4c6576a8adc3f683b2899de4b0e7d099e4"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://bugs.eclipse.org/bugs/show_bug.cgi?id=567416"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r591f6932560c8c46cee87415afed92924a982189fea7f7c9096f8e33@%3Ccommits.pulsar.apache.org%3E"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r8383b5e7344a8b872e430ad72241b84b83e9701d275c602cfe34a941@%3Ccommits.servicecomb.apache.org%3E"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r8d863b148efe778ce5f8f961d0cafeda399e681d3f0656233b4c5511@%3Ccommits.pulsar.apache.org%3E"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/rd0e44e8ef71eeaaa3cf3d1b8b41eb25894372e2995ec908ce7624d26@%3Ccommits.pulsar.apache.org%3E"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/rfd0ebf8387cfd0b959d1e218797e709793cce51a5ea2f84d0976f47d@%3Ccommits.pulsar.apache.org%3E"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://mvnrepository.com/artifact/io.vertx/vertx-web"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-22", "CWE-23" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2021-04-22T22:08:15Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2020-10-15T21:15:00Z"
  }
}