CVE-2023-25581: Pac4j core Pac4j-core Affected By A Java Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-76mw-6p95-x9x5
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-502
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2023-25581 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) pac4j-core affected by a java vulnerability (CWE-502: Deserialization of Untrusted Data) affecting Pac4j core libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves pac4j-core affected by a java deserialization vulnerability. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 4.0.0.

CVE-2023-25581 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2023-25581
GHSA Identifier GHSA-76mw-6p95-x9x5
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-502: Deserialization of Untrusted Data
Affected Product Pac4j core
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-2023-25581

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Pac4j core 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.pac4j:pac4j-core fixed: 4.0.0 
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.pac4j</groupId>
    <artifactId>pac4j-core</artifactId>
    <version>4.0.0</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.pac4j

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2023-25581, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.pac4j

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Pac4j core in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 4.0.0), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.pac4j 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-502: Deserialization of Untrusted Data, where the product deserializes untrusted data without sufficiently ensuring that the resulting data will be valid. In Pac4j core, 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

pac4j is a security framework for Java. `pac4j-core` prior to version 4.0.0 is affected by a Java deserialization vulnerability. The vulnerability affects systems that store externally controlled values in attributes of the `UserProfile` class from pac4j-core. It can be exploited by providing an attribute that contains a serialized Java object with a special prefix `{#sb64}` and Base64 encoding. This issue may lead to Remote Code Execution (RCE) in the worst case. Although a `RestrictedObjectInputStream` is in place, that puts some restriction on what classes can be deserialized, it still allows a broad range of java packages and potentially exploitable with different gadget chains. pac4j versions 4.0.0 and greater are not affected by this issue. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability.

CVE-2023-25581 Affected Pac4j core Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
4.0.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
org.pac4j:pac4j-core
maven/org.pac4j/pac4j-core
Maven
< 4.0.0
4.0.0

References

NVD — CVE-2023-25581 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-25581
Pac4j core Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/frohoff/ysoserial
Pac4j core Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pac4j/pac4j
Pac4j core Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pac4j/pac4j/blob/5834aeb22ad3a4369dfa572be60d7b20f5784a8f/pac4j-core/src/main/java/org/pac4j/core/profile/InternalAttributeHandler.java#L95
Pac4j core Security Information SECURITY
https://portswigger.net/web-security/deserialization
Pac4j core Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://securitylab.github.com/advisories
GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://securitylab.github.com/advisories/GHSL-2022-085_pac4j

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2023-25581?
CVE-2023-25581 is a security vulnerability in Pac4j core involving pac4j-core affected by a Java deserialization vulnerability under CWE-502: Deserialization of Untrusted Data.
Which Pac4j core versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 4.0.0 across affected packages: org.pac4j:pac4j-core.
What version fixes CVE-2023-25581?
Upgrading to 4.0.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is pac4j-core affected?
Yes, org.pac4j:pac4j-core is affected in releases prior to 4.0.0. Upgrade your dependency to 4.0.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2023-25581?
CVE-2023-25581 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-2023-25581?
CVE-2023-25581 is classified under CWE-502: Deserialization of Untrusted Data (The product deserializes untrusted data without sufficiently ensuring that the resulting data will be valid.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2023-25581?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.pac4j'. 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-76mw-6p95-x9x5",
  "modified" : "2024-10-11T22:16:56Z",
  "published" : "2024-10-11T22:16:56Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2023-25581" ],
  "summary" : "pac4j-core affected by a Java deserialization vulnerability",
  "details" : "pac4j is a security framework for Java. `pac4j-core` prior to version 4.0.0 is affected by a Java deserialization vulnerability. The vulnerability affects systems that store externally controlled values in attributes of the `UserProfile` class from pac4j-core. It can be exploited by providing an attribute that contains a serialized Java object with a special prefix `{#sb64}` and Base64 encoding. This issue may lead to Remote Code Execution (RCE) in the worst case. Although a `RestrictedObjectInputStream` is in place, that puts some restriction on what classes can be deserialized, it still allows a broad range of java packages and potentially exploitable with different gadget chains. pac4j versions 4.0.0 and greater are not affected by this issue. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "org.pac4j:pac4j-core"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "4.0.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-25581"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/frohoff/ysoserial"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pac4j/pac4j"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pac4j/pac4j/blob/5834aeb22ad3a4369dfa572be60d7b20f5784a8f/pac4j-core/src/main/java/org/pac4j/core/profile/InternalAttributeHandler.java#L95"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://portswigger.net/web-security/deserialization"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://securitylab.github.com/advisories"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://securitylab.github.com/advisories/GHSL-2022-085_pac4j"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-502" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2024-10-11T22:16:56Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2024-10-10T16:15:04Z"
  }
}