CVE-2026-46585: Apache Camel-Lucene The Query Control Headers Used Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-566h-v38h-3xp3
CVSS 7.5
CWE-639 CWE-20
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2026-46585 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) the query control headers used vulnerability (CWE-639: Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key) affecting Apache Camel-Lucene libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves the query control headers used non-camel-prefixed names (query, return_lucene_docs) that bypass the http header filter, allowing an http client to inject the full-text search query. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 4.14.8, 4.18.3, 4.21.0.

CVE-2026-46585 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2026-46585
GHSA Identifier GHSA-566h-v38h-3xp3
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-639: Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key
Affected Product Apache Camel-Lucene
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: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 Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity None (I:N)
Availability None (A:N)

How to Fix CVE-2026-46585

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Apache Camel-Lucene 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.camel:camel-lucene fixed: 4.14.8
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.apache.camel</groupId>
    <artifactId>camel-lucene</artifactId>
    <version>4.14.8</version>
</dependency>
org.apache.camel:camel-lucene fixed: 4.18.3
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.apache.camel</groupId>
    <artifactId>camel-lucene</artifactId>
    <version>4.18.3</version>
</dependency>
org.apache.camel:camel-lucene fixed: 4.21.0
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.apache.camel</groupId>
    <artifactId>camel-lucene</artifactId>
    <version>4.21.0</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.apache.camel

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2026-46585, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

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

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Apache Camel-Lucene in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 4.14.8), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.apache.camel 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-639: Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key, where the system's authorization functionality does not prevent one user from gaining access to another user's data or record by modifying the key value identifying the data. In Apache Camel-Lucene, 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

Improper Input Validation, Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key vulnerability in Apache Camel Lucene Component. The camel-lucene producer reads the search phrase from an Exchange header (LuceneConstants.HEADER_QUERY) whose value was the plain string QUERY (and RETURN_LUCENE_DOCS for HEADER_RETURN_LUCENE_DOCS). Because these names do not start with the Camel / camel prefix, HttpHeaderFilterStrategy - which blocks only the Camel header namespace on the HTTP boundary - let them pass from an inbound HTTP request straight into the Exchange. In a route that exposes a Lucene query operation behind an HTTP consumer (for example platform-http), any HTTP client could therefore set the QUERY header and have its value executed against the full-text index, overriding the query the route intended to run. Depending on what is indexed, this allows reading documents the request should not have access to (for example a match-all query returns the entire index, or the route's intended per-user filter can be replaced), and expensive regular-expression queries can consume significant CPU. No credentials are required when the HTTP consumer is unauthenticated. This issue affects Apache Camel: from 4.0.0 before 4.14.8, from 4.15.0 before 4.18.3, from 4.19.0 before 4.21.0. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 4.21.0, which fixes the issue. If users are on the 4.14.x LTS releases stream, then they are suggested to upgrade to 4.14.8. If users are on the 4.18.x releases stream, then they are suggested to upgrade to 4.18.3. After upgrading, routes that set the query via the raw header name must use CamelLuceneQuery (and CamelLuceneReturnLuceneDocs) instead of QUERY / RETURN_LUCENE_DOCS. For deployments that cannot upgrade immediately, strip the attacker-controllable headers before the Lucene producer and set the query from a trusted source (for example removeHeader('QUERY') and removeHeader('RETURN_LUCENE_DOCS'), then setHeader('QUERY', constant(...)) at the start of the route).

CVE-2026-46585 Affected Apache Camel-Lucene Versions

3 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
4.14.84.18.34.21.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
org.apache.camel:camel-lucene
Maven
≥ 4.0.0
< 4.14.8
4.14.8
org.apache.camel:camel-lucene
Maven
≥ 4.15.0
< 4.18.3
4.18.3
org.apache.camel:camel-lucene
Maven
≥ 4.19.0
< 4.21.0
4.21.0

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2026-46585?
CVE-2026-46585 is a security vulnerability in Apache Camel-Lucene involving The query control headers used non-Camel-prefixed names (QUERY, RETURN_LUCENE_DOCS) that bypass the HTTP header filter, allowing an HTTP client to inject the full-text search query under CWE-639: Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key.
Which Apache Camel-Lucene versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 4.14.8, 4.18.3, 4.21.0 across affected packages: org.apache.camel:camel-lucene.
What version fixes CVE-2026-46585?
Upgrading to 4.14.8, 4.18.3, 4.21.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is camel-lucene affected?
Yes, org.apache.camel:camel-lucene is affected in releases prior to 4.14.8, 4.18.3, 4.21.0. Upgrade your dependency to 4.14.8, 4.18.3, 4.21.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-46585?
CVE-2026-46585 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:H/I:N/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2026-46585?
CVE-2026-46585 is classified under CWE-639: Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key (The system's authorization functionality does not prevent one user from gaining access to another user's data or record by modifying the key value identifying the data.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2026-46585?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.apache.camel'. 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
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  "details" : "Improper Input Validation, Authorization Bypass Through User-Controlled Key vulnerability in Apache Camel Lucene Component.\n\nThe camel-lucene producer reads the search phrase from an Exchange header (LuceneConstants.HEADER_QUERY) whose value was the plain string QUERY (and RETURN_LUCENE_DOCS for HEADER_RETURN_LUCENE_DOCS). Because these names do not start with the Camel / camel prefix, HttpHeaderFilterStrategy - which blocks only the Camel header namespace on the HTTP boundary - let them pass from an inbound HTTP request straight into the Exchange. In a route that exposes a Lucene query operation behind an HTTP consumer (for example platform-http), any HTTP client could therefore set the QUERY header and have its value executed against the full-text index, overriding the query the route intended to run. Depending on what is indexed, this allows reading documents the request should not have access to (for example a match-all query returns the entire index, or the route's intended per-user filter can be replaced), and expensive regular-expression queries can consume significant CPU. No credentials are required when the HTTP consumer is unauthenticated.\nThis issue affects Apache Camel: from 4.0.0 before 4.14.8, from 4.15.0 before 4.18.3, from 4.19.0 before 4.21.0.\n\nUsers are recommended to upgrade to version 4.21.0, which fixes the issue. If users are on the 4.14.x LTS releases stream, then they are suggested to upgrade to 4.14.8. If users are on the 4.18.x releases stream, then they are suggested to upgrade to 4.18.3. After upgrading, routes that set the query via the raw header name must use CamelLuceneQuery (and CamelLuceneReturnLuceneDocs) instead of QUERY / RETURN_LUCENE_DOCS. For deployments that cannot upgrade immediately, strip the attacker-controllable headers before the Lucene producer and set the query from a trusted source (for example removeHeader('QUERY') and removeHeader('RETURN_LUCENE_DOCS'), then setHeader('QUERY', constant(...)) at the start of the route).",
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}