CVE-2023-38522: Software Security Vulnerability Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-68qf-xhq3-9qj5
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CVSS 7.5
CWE-444 CWE-20 CWE-86
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2023-38522 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) security vulnerability vulnerability (CWE-444: Inconsistent Interpretation of HTTP Requests ('HTTP Request/Response Smuggling')) affecting Software libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The weakness occurs when the product acts as an intermediary http agent (such as a proxy or firewall) in the data flow between two entities such as a client and server, but it does not interpret malformed http requests or responses in ways that are consistent with how the messages will be processed by those entities that are at the ultimate destination.. Remediation is available in the latest vendor maintenance releases.

CVE-2023-38522 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2023-38522
GHSA Identifier GHSA-68qf-xhq3-9qj5
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-444: Inconsistent Interpretation of HTTP Requests ('HTTP Request/Response Smuggling')
Affected Product Software
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:3.1/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-2023-38522

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Software dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

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

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2023-38522, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree

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

Note: The mvn dependency:tree 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-444: Inconsistent Interpretation of HTTP Requests ('HTTP Request/Response Smuggling'), where the product acts as an intermediary http agent (such as a proxy or firewall) in the data flow between two entities such as a client and server, but it does not interpret malformed http requests or responses in ways that are consistent with how the messages will be processed by those entities that are at the ultimate destination. In Software, 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 Traffic Server accepts characters that are not allowed for HTTP field names and forwards malformed requests to origin servers. This can be utilized for request smuggling and may also lead cache poisoning if the origin servers are vulnerable. This issue affects Apache Traffic Server: from 8.0.0 through 8.1.10, from 9.0.0 through 9.2.4. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 8.1.11 or 9.2.5, which fixes the issue.

References

NVD — CVE-2023-38522 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-38522
lists.apache.org/thread/c4mcmpblgl8k... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread/c4mcmpblgl8kkmyt56t23543gp8v56m0
lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce... WEB
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2024/09/msg00040.html

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2023-38522?
CVE-2023-38522 is a security vulnerability in Software classified as a security vulnerability vulnerability under CWE-444: Inconsistent Interpretation of HTTP Requests ('HTTP Request/Response Smuggling').
Which Software versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to current release patches.
What version fixes CVE-2023-38522?
Upgrading to current release patches (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2023-38522?
CVE-2023-38522 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2023-38522?
CVE-2023-38522 is classified under CWE-444: Inconsistent Interpretation of HTTP Requests ('HTTP Request/Response Smuggling') (The product acts as an intermediary HTTP agent (such as a proxy or firewall) in the data flow between two entities such as a client and server, but it does not interpret malformed HTTP requests or responses in ways that are consistent with how the messages will be processed by those entities that are at the ultimate destination.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2023-38522?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree'. 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-68qf-xhq3-9qj5",
  "modified" : "2025-11-04T00:30:58Z",
  "published" : "2024-07-26T12:35:48Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2023-38522" ],
  "details" : "Apache Traffic Server accepts characters that are not allowed for HTTP field names and forwards malformed requests to origin servers. This can be utilized for request smuggling and may also lead cache poisoning if the origin servers are vulnerable.\n\nThis issue affects Apache Traffic Server: from 8.0.0 through 8.1.10, from 9.0.0 through 9.2.4.\n\nUsers are recommended to upgrade to version 8.1.11 or 9.2.5, which fixes the issue.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-38522"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.apache.org/thread/c4mcmpblgl8kkmyt56t23543gp8v56m0"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2024/09/msg00040.html"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-20", "CWE-444", "CWE-86" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : false,
    "github_reviewed_at" : null,
    "nvd_published_at" : "2024-07-26T10:15:01Z"
  }
}