CVE-2018-20227: Rdf4j RDF4J Vulnerable To Zip Slip Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-x3cr-x949-h5jv
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CVSS 7.5
CWE-22
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2018-20227 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) rdf4j vulnerable to zip slip vulnerability (CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')) affecting Rdf4j libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves rdf4j vulnerable to zip slip. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 2.5.0.

CVE-2018-20227 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2018-20227
GHSA Identifier GHSA-x3cr-x949-h5jv
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
Affected Product Rdf4j
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:H/A:N).

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

How to Fix CVE-2018-20227

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Rdf4j 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.eclipse.rdf4j:rdf4j fixed: 2.5.0 
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.eclipse.rdf4j</groupId>
    <artifactId>rdf4j</artifactId>
    <version>2.5.0</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.eclipse.rdf4j

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2018-20227, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.eclipse.rdf4j

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Rdf4j in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 2.5.0), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.eclipse.rdf4j 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-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal'), where the product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory. In Rdf4j, 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

RDF4J prior to 2.5.0 allows Directory Traversal via ../ in an entry in a ZIP archive.

CVE-2018-20227 Affected Rdf4j Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
2.5.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
org.eclipse.rdf4j:rdf4j
maven/org.eclipse.rdf4j/rdf4j
Maven
< 2.5.0
2.5.0

References

NVD — CVE-2018-20227 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-20227
Rdf4j Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/eclipse/rdf4j/issues/1210
Rdf4j Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/eclipse/rdf4j/pull/1211/commits/df15a4d7a8f2789c043b27c9eafe1b30316cfa79
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/eclipse-rdf4j/rdf4j/commit/df15a4d7a8f2789c043b27c9eafe1b30316cfa79
Rdf4j Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/eclipse-rdf4j/rdf4j

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2018-20227?
CVE-2018-20227 is a security vulnerability in Rdf4j involving RDF4J vulnerable to zip slip under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal').
Which Rdf4j versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 2.5.0 across affected packages: org.eclipse.rdf4j:rdf4j.
What version fixes CVE-2018-20227?
Upgrading to 2.5.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is rdf4j affected?
Yes, org.eclipse.rdf4j:rdf4j is affected in releases prior to 2.5.0. Upgrade your dependency to 2.5.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2018-20227?
CVE-2018-20227 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:H/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2018-20227?
CVE-2018-20227 is classified under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') (The product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2018-20227?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.eclipse.rdf4j'. 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-x3cr-x949-h5jv",
  "modified" : "2024-08-16T18:36:31Z",
  "published" : "2022-05-14T01:42:52Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2018-20227" ],
  "summary" : "RDF4J vulnerable to zip slip",
  "details" : "RDF4J prior to 2.5.0 allows Directory Traversal via ../ in an entry in a ZIP archive.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "org.eclipse.rdf4j:rdf4j"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2.5.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-20227"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/eclipse/rdf4j/issues/1210"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/eclipse/rdf4j/pull/1211/commits/df15a4d7a8f2789c043b27c9eafe1b30316cfa79"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/eclipse-rdf4j/rdf4j/commit/df15a4d7a8f2789c043b27c9eafe1b30316cfa79"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/eclipse-rdf4j/rdf4j"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-22" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2022-11-08T23:22:04Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2018-12-19T11:29:00Z"
  }
}