CVE-2020-11612: Netty handler Denial of Service Vulnerability
HIGHCVE-2020-11612 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) denial of service vulnerability (CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption) affecting Netty handler libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves denial of service in netty. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 4.1.46.
CVE-2020-11612 at a Glance
Security Impact
CVSS: 7.5
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:N/I:N/A:H).
How to Fix CVE-2020-11612
To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Netty handler dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.
<dependency>
<groupId>io.netty</groupId>
<artifactId>netty-handler</artifactId>
<version>4.1.46</version>
</dependency>
Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release:
mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.netty
How to Check if You Are Affected
To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2020-11612, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:
mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.netty
Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Netty handler in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 4.1.46), your application is affected.
Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=io.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-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption, where the product does not properly control the allocation and maintenance of a limited resource. In Netty handler, 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
CVE-2020-11612 Affected Netty handler Versions
1 component(s)| Product / Package | Ecosystem | Affected Versions | Fixed Version |
|---|---|---|---|
|
io.netty:netty-handler
|
Maven |
≥ 4.1.0
< 4.1.46
|
4.1.46
|
References
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CVE-2020-11612?
Which Netty handler versions are affected?
What version fixes CVE-2020-11612?
Is netty-handler affected?
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-11612?
What CWE is associated with CVE-2020-11612?
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2020-11612?
Machine-readable OSV JSON
OSV v1.5 Schema
{
"schema_version" : "1.4.0",
"id" : "GHSA-mm9x-g8pc-w292",
"modified" : "2021-06-15T17:31:50Z",
"published" : "2020-06-15T19:36:16Z",
"aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-11612" ],
"summary" : "Denial of Service in Netty",
"details" : "The ZlibDecoders in Netty 4.1.x before 4.1.46 allow for unbounded memory allocation while decoding a ZlibEncoded byte stream. An attacker could send a large ZlibEncoded byte stream to the Netty server, forcing the server to allocate all of its free memory to a single decoder.",
"severity" : [ {
"type" : "CVSS_V3",
"score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H"
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} ],
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"database_specific" : {
"cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-119", "CWE-400", "CWE-770" ],
"severity" : "HIGH",
"github_reviewed" : true,
"github_reviewed_at" : "2020-06-11T19:58:52Z",
"nvd_published_at" : "2020-04-07T18:15:00Z"
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}