CVE-2019-11284: Reactor netty Insufficiently Protected Credentials Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-j52r-xc68-q8f4
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CVSS 8.6
CWE-522
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2019-11284 is a HIGH (CVSS 8.6) insufficiently protected credentials vulnerability (CWE-522: Insufficiently Protected Credentials) affecting Reactor netty libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves insufficiently protected credentials in pivotal reactor netty. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 0.8.11.

CVE-2019-11284 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2019-11284
GHSA Identifier GHSA-j52r-xc68-q8f4
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 8.6
CWE Classification CWE-522: Insufficiently Protected Credentials
Affected Product Reactor netty
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 8.6

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:C/C:H/I:N/A:N).

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

How to Fix CVE-2019-11284

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Reactor netty 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.projectreactor.netty:reactor-netty fixed: 0.8.11 
<dependency>
    <groupId>io.projectreactor.netty</groupId>
    <artifactId>reactor-netty</artifactId>
    <version>0.8.11</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.projectreactor.netty

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2019-11284, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.projectreactor.netty

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Reactor netty in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 0.8.11), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.projectreactor.netty 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-522: Insufficiently Protected Credentials, where the product transmits or stores authentication credentials, but it uses an insecure method that is susceptible to unauthorized interception and/or retrieval. In Reactor netty, 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

Pivotal Reactor Netty, versions prior to 0.8.11, passes headers through redirects, including authorization ones. A remote unauthenticated malicious user may gain access to credentials for a different server than they have access to.

CVE-2019-11284 Affected Reactor netty Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
0.8.11
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
io.projectreactor.netty:reactor-netty
maven/io.projectreactor.netty/reactor-netty
Maven
< 0.8.11
0.8.11

References

NVD — CVE-2019-11284 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-11284
Reactor netty Security Information SECURITY
https://pivotal.io/security/cve-2019-11284

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2019-11284?
CVE-2019-11284 is a security vulnerability in Reactor netty involving Insufficiently Protected Credentials in Pivotal Reactor Netty under CWE-522: Insufficiently Protected Credentials.
Which Reactor netty versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 0.8.11 across affected packages: io.projectreactor.netty:reactor-netty.
What version fixes CVE-2019-11284?
Upgrading to 0.8.11 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is reactor-netty affected?
Yes, io.projectreactor.netty:reactor-netty is affected in releases prior to 0.8.11. Upgrade your dependency to 0.8.11 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2019-11284?
CVE-2019-11284 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.6 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2019-11284?
CVE-2019-11284 is classified under CWE-522: Insufficiently Protected Credentials (The product transmits or stores authentication credentials, but it uses an insecure method that is susceptible to unauthorized interception and/or retrieval.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2019-11284?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.projectreactor.netty'. 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-j52r-xc68-q8f4",
  "modified" : "2021-08-18T21:52:58Z",
  "published" : "2019-10-23T14:14:32Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2019-11284" ],
  "summary" : "Insufficiently Protected Credentials in Pivotal Reactor Netty",
  "details" : "Pivotal Reactor Netty, versions prior to 0.8.11, passes headers through redirects, including authorization ones. A remote unauthenticated malicious user may gain access to credentials for a different server than they have access to.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "io.projectreactor.netty:reactor-netty"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "0.8.11"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-11284"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://pivotal.io/security/cve-2019-11284"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-522" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2019-10-22T15:49:44Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2019-10-17T18:15:00Z"
  }
}