CVE-2020-13957: Solr parent Incorrect Authorization Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-3c7p-vv5r-cmr5
Share
CVSS 9.8
CWE-863
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-13957 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) incorrect authorization vulnerability (CWE-863: Incorrect Authorization) affecting Solr parent libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves incorrect authorization in apache solr. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 8.6.3.

CVE-2020-13957 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-13957
GHSA Identifier GHSA-3c7p-vv5r-cmr5
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-863: Incorrect Authorization
Affected Product Solr parent
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-2020-13957

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Solr parent 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.apache.solr:solr-parent fixed: 8.6.3 
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.apache.solr</groupId>
    <artifactId>solr-parent</artifactId>
    <version>8.6.3</version>
</dependency>
org.apache.solr:solr-solrj fixed: 8.6.3 
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.apache.solr</groupId>
    <artifactId>solr-solrj</artifactId>
    <version>8.6.3</version>
</dependency>
org.apache.solr:solr-core fixed: 8.6.3 
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.apache.solr</groupId>
    <artifactId>solr-core</artifactId>
    <version>8.6.3</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.apache.solr

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2020-13957, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.apache.solr

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Solr parent in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 8.6.3), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.apache.solr 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-863: Incorrect Authorization, where the product performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action, but it does not correctly perform the check. In Solr parent, 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

Apache Solr versions 6.6.0 to 6.6.6, 7.0.0 to 7.7.3 and 8.0.0 to 8.6.2 prevents some features considered dangerous (which could be used for remote code execution) to be configured in a ConfigSet that's uploaded via API without authentication/authorization. The checks in place to prevent such features can be circumvented by using a combination of UPLOAD/CREATE actions. This issue is patched in 8.6.3.

CVE-2020-13957 Affected Solr parent Versions

3 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
8.6.3
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
org.apache.solr:solr-parent
maven/org.apache.solr/solr-parent
Maven
≥ 6.6.0
< 8.6.3
8.6.3
org.apache.solr:solr-solrj
maven/org.apache.solr/solr-solrj
Maven
≥ 6.6.0
< 8.6.3
8.6.3
org.apache.solr:solr-core
maven/org.apache.solr/solr-core
Maven
≥ 6.6.0
< 8.6.3
8.6.3

References

NVD — CVE-2020-13957 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-13957
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/apache/solr/commit/e001c2221812a0ba9e9378855040ce72f93eced4
Solr parent Security Information SECURITY
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20201023-0002
mail-archives.us.apache.org/mod_mbox/www-announ... WEB
https://mail-archives.us.apache.org/mod_mbox/www-announce/202010.mbox/%3CCAECwjAWCVLoVaZy%3DTNRQ6Wk9KWVxdPRiGS8NT%2BPHMJCxbbsEVg%40mail.gmail.com%3E
lists.apache.org/thread.html/rf1a32f... WEB
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lists.apache.org/thread.html/r2236fd... WEB
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lists.apache.org/thread.html/r1c783d... WEB
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lists.apache.org/thread.html/r13a728... WEB
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Solr parent Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/apache/lucene-solr

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-13957?
CVE-2020-13957 is a security vulnerability in Solr parent involving Incorrect Authorization in Apache Solr under CWE-863: Incorrect Authorization.
Which Solr parent versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 8.6.3 across affected packages: org.apache.solr:solr-parent, org.apache.solr:solr-solrj, org.apache.solr:solr-core.
What version fixes CVE-2020-13957?
Upgrading to 8.6.3 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is solr-parent affected?
Yes, org.apache.solr:solr-parent is affected in releases prior to 8.6.3. Upgrade your dependency to 8.6.3 or later.
Is solr-solrj affected?
Yes, org.apache.solr:solr-solrj is affected in releases prior to 8.6.3. Upgrade your dependency to 8.6.3 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-13957?
CVE-2020-13957 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-2020-13957?
CVE-2020-13957 is classified under CWE-863: Incorrect Authorization (The product performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action, but it does not correctly perform the check.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2020-13957?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.apache.solr'. 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-3c7p-vv5r-cmr5",
  "modified" : "2025-03-17T21:39:03Z",
  "published" : "2022-02-10T00:31:27Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-13957" ],
  "summary" : "Incorrect Authorization in Apache Solr",
  "details" : "Apache Solr versions 6.6.0 to 6.6.6, 7.0.0 to 7.7.3 and 8.0.0 to 8.6.2 prevents some features considered dangerous (which could be used for remote code execution) to be configured in a ConfigSet that's uploaded via API without authentication/authorization. The checks in place to prevent such features can be circumvented by using a combination of UPLOAD/CREATE actions. This issue is patched in 8.6.3.",
  "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" : "org.apache.solr:solr-parent"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "6.6.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "8.6.3"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "org.apache.solr:solr-solrj"
    },
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        "introduced" : "6.6.0"
      }, {
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      } ]
    } ]
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    },
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  }, {
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  "database_specific" : {
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    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2021-04-14T17:55:51Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2020-10-13T19:15:00Z"
  }
}