CVE-2023-45859: Hazelcast Missing Permission Checks On Hazelcast Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-xh6m-7cr7-xx66
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CVSS 7.6
CWE-922 CWE-281
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2023-45859 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.6) missing permission checks on hazelcast vulnerability (CWE-922: Insecure Storage of Sensitive Information) affecting Hazelcast libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves missing permission checks on hazelcast client protocol. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 5.2.5, 5.3.5.

CVE-2023-45859 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2023-45859
GHSA Identifier GHSA-xh6m-7cr7-xx66
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.6
CWE Classification CWE-922: Insecure Storage of Sensitive Information
Affected Product Hazelcast
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.6

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:H/I:L/A:L).

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 High (C:H)
Integrity Low (I:L)
Availability Low (A:L)

How to Fix CVE-2023-45859

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Hazelcast 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.hazelcast:hazelcast fixed: Latest secure release 
<dependency>
    <groupId>com.hazelcast</groupId>
    <artifactId>hazelcast</artifactId>
    <version>Latest secure release</version>
</dependency>
com.hazelcast:hazelcast fixed: Latest secure release 
<dependency>
    <groupId>com.hazelcast</groupId>
    <artifactId>hazelcast</artifactId>
    <version>Latest secure release</version>
</dependency>
com.hazelcast:hazelcast fixed: Latest secure release 
<dependency>
    <groupId>com.hazelcast</groupId>
    <artifactId>hazelcast</artifactId>
    <version>Latest secure release</version>
</dependency>
com.hazelcast:hazelcast fixed: Latest secure release 
<dependency>
    <groupId>com.hazelcast</groupId>
    <artifactId>hazelcast</artifactId>
    <version>Latest secure release</version>
</dependency>
com.hazelcast:hazelcast fixed: 5.2.5 
<dependency>
    <groupId>com.hazelcast</groupId>
    <artifactId>hazelcast</artifactId>
    <version>5.2.5</version>
</dependency>
com.hazelcast:hazelcast fixed: 5.3.5 
<dependency>
    <groupId>com.hazelcast</groupId>
    <artifactId>hazelcast</artifactId>
    <version>5.3.5</version>
</dependency>
com.hazelcast:hazelcast-all fixed: Latest secure release 
<dependency>
    <groupId>com.hazelcast</groupId>
    <artifactId>hazelcast-all</artifactId>
    <version>Latest secure release</version>
</dependency>
com.hazelcast:hazelcast-all fixed: Latest secure release 
<dependency>
    <groupId>com.hazelcast</groupId>
    <artifactId>hazelcast-all</artifactId>
    <version>Latest secure release</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.hazelcast

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2023-45859, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=com.hazelcast

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Hazelcast in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 5.2.5), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=com.hazelcast 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-922: Insecure Storage of Sensitive Information, where the product stores sensitive information without properly limiting read or write access by unauthorized actors. In Hazelcast, 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

### Impact In Hazelcast through 4.1.10, 4.2 through 4.2.8, 5.0 through 5.0.5, 5.1 through 5.1.7, 5.2 through 5.2.4, and 5.3 through 5.3.2, some client operations don't check permissions properly, allowing authenticated users to access data stored in the cluster. ### Patches Fix versions: 5.2.5, 5.3.5, 5.4.0-BETA-1 ### Workarounds There is no known workaround.

CVE-2023-45859 Affected Hazelcast Versions

8 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
5.2.55.3.5
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
com.hazelcast:hazelcast
maven/com.hazelcast/hazelcast
Maven
≤ 4.1.10
com.hazelcast:hazelcast
maven/com.hazelcast/hazelcast
Maven
≥ 4.2
≤ 4.2.8
com.hazelcast:hazelcast
maven/com.hazelcast/hazelcast
Maven
≥ 5.0
≤ 5.0.5
com.hazelcast:hazelcast
maven/com.hazelcast/hazelcast
Maven
≥ 5.1
≤ 5.1.7
com.hazelcast:hazelcast
maven/com.hazelcast/hazelcast
Maven
≥ 5.2.0
< 5.2.5
5.2.5
com.hazelcast:hazelcast
maven/com.hazelcast/hazelcast
Maven
≥ 5.3.0
< 5.3.5
5.3.5
com.hazelcast:hazelcast-all
maven/com.hazelcast/hazelcast-all
Maven
≤ 4.1.10
com.hazelcast:hazelcast-all
maven/com.hazelcast/hazelcast-all
Maven
≥ 4.2
≤ 4.2.8

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/hazelcast/hazelcast/security/advisories/GHSA-xh6m-7cr7-xx66
NVD — CVE-2023-45859 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-45859
Hazelcast Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/hazelcast/hazelcast/pull/25509
Hazelcast Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/hazelcast/hazelcast

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2023-45859?
CVE-2023-45859 is a security vulnerability in Hazelcast involving Missing permission checks on Hazelcast client protocol under CWE-922: Insecure Storage of Sensitive Information.
Which Hazelcast versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 5.2.5, 5.3.5 across affected packages: com.hazelcast:hazelcast, com.hazelcast:hazelcast-all.
What version fixes CVE-2023-45859?
Upgrading to 5.2.5, 5.3.5 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is hazelcast affected?
Yes, com.hazelcast:hazelcast is affected in releases prior to Latest secure release, 5.2.5, 5.3.5. Upgrade your dependency to Latest secure release, 5.2.5, 5.3.5 or later.
Is hazelcast-all affected?
Yes, com.hazelcast:hazelcast-all is affected in releases prior to Latest secure release. Upgrade your dependency to Latest secure release or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2023-45859?
CVE-2023-45859 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.6 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:L.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2023-45859?
CVE-2023-45859 is classified under CWE-922: Insecure Storage of Sensitive Information (The product stores sensitive information without properly limiting read or write access by unauthorized actors.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2023-45859?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=com.hazelcast'. 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-xh6m-7cr7-xx66",
  "modified" : "2025-05-30T12:36:04Z",
  "published" : "2024-02-27T21:54:15Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2023-45859" ],
  "summary" : "Missing permission checks on Hazelcast client protocol",
  "details" : "### Impact\nIn Hazelcast through 4.1.10, 4.2 through 4.2.8, 5.0 through 5.0.5, 5.1 through 5.1.7, 5.2 through 5.2.4, and 5.3 through 5.3.2, some client operations don't check permissions properly, allowing authenticated users to access data stored in the cluster.\n\n### Patches\nFix versions: 5.2.5, 5.3.5, 5.4.0-BETA-1\n\n### Workarounds\nThere is no known workaround.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:L/A:L"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "com.hazelcast:hazelcast"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "last_affected" : "4.1.10"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "com.hazelcast:hazelcast"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "4.2"
      }, {
        "last_affected" : "4.2.8"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "com.hazelcast:hazelcast"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "5.0"
      }, {
        "last_affected" : "5.0.5"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "com.hazelcast:hazelcast"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "5.1"
      }, {
        "last_affected" : "5.1.7"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "com.hazelcast:hazelcast"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "5.2.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "5.2.5"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 5.2.4"
    }
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "com.hazelcast:hazelcast"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "5.3.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "5.3.5"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "com.hazelcast:hazelcast-all"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "last_affected" : "4.1.10"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "com.hazelcast:hazelcast-all"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "4.2"
      }, {
        "last_affected" : "4.2.8"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/hazelcast/hazelcast/security/advisories/GHSA-xh6m-7cr7-xx66"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-45859"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/hazelcast/hazelcast/pull/25509"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/hazelcast/hazelcast"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-281", "CWE-922" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2024-02-27T21:54:15Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2024-02-28T22:15:26Z"
  }
}