Vulnerabilities in pkg:maven/software.amazon.awssdk/cloudfront

PACKAGE
Share
Advisory Summary

GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h is a HIGH improper handling of special characters vulnerability (CWE-116: Improper Encoding or Escaping of Output) affecting Cloudfront libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves improper handling of special characters in cloudfront signing utilities. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 2.41.30.

1 Known Advisory Record(s)
Package Vulnerability Intelligence

pkg:maven/software.amazon.awssdk/cloudfront

1 Known Advisory Record(s)

Vulnerability advisories affecting package pkg:maven/software.amazon.awssdk/cloudfront. Select an advisory below to view technical details or fixes.

Advisory ID CVE / NVD Severity Summary
GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h - HIGH AWS SDK for Java 2.0: Improper Handling of Special Characters in CloudFront Signing Utilities

GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h at a Glance

CVE Identifier N/A
GHSA Identifier GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score N/A
CWE Classification CWE-116: Improper Encoding or Escaping of Output
Affected Product Cloudfront
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

How to Fix GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h

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

software.amazon.awssdk:cloudfront fixed: 2.41.30 
<dependency>
    <groupId>software.amazon.awssdk</groupId>
    <artifactId>cloudfront</artifactId>
    <version>2.41.30</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=software.amazon.awssdk

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=software.amazon.awssdk

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Cloudfront in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 2.41.30), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=software.amazon.awssdk 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-116: Improper Encoding or Escaping of Output, where the product prepares a structured message for communication with another component, but encoding or escaping of the data is either missing or done incorrectly. as a result, the intended structure of the message is not preserved. In Cloudfront, 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

### Summary This notification is related to the [CloudFront signing utilities](https://github.com/aws/aws-sdk-java-v2/blob/master/services/cloudfront/src/main/java/software/amazon/awssdk/services/cloudfront/CloudFrontUtilities.java) in the AWS SDK for Java v2, which are used to generate Amazon CloudFront signed URLs and signed cookies. A defense-in-depth enhancement has been implemented to improve handling of special characters, such as double quotes and backslashes, in input values. ### Impact The CloudFront signing utilities build policy documents that define access restrictions for signed URLs and cookies. If an application passes unsanitized input containing special characters to these utilities, the resulting policy document may not reflect the application's intended access restrictions. While the SDK was functioning safely within the requirements of the shared responsibility model, additional safeguards have been added to support secure customer implementations. Applications that already follow AWS security best practices for input validation are not impacted. ### Impacted versions: 2.18.33 - 2.41.29 ### Patches On 2026.02.16, an enhancement was made to AWS SDK for Java v2 version 2.41.30. The enhancement ensures that special characters in input values are correctly handled. We recommend upgrading to the latest version. ### Workarounds No workarounds are needed, but customers should ensure that your application is following security best practices: * Implement proper input validation in your application code before passing values to CloudFront signing utilities * Update to the latest AWS SDK release on a regular basis * Follow [AWS security best practices for SDK configuration](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/sdk-for-java/latest/developer-guide/security.html) ### Resources If there are any questions or comments about this advisory, contact [AWS/Amazon] Security via our vulnerability reporting page or directly via email to [aws-security@amazon.com](mailto:aws-security@amazon.com). Please do not create a public GitHub issue. ### Acknowledgement AWS SDK for Java 2.0 thanks the Amazon Inspector Security Research team for identifying this issue and working with us through the coordinated process.

GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h Affected Cloudfront Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
2.41.30
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
software.amazon.awssdk:cloudfront
maven/software.amazon.awssdk/cloudfront
Maven
≥ 2.18.33
< 2.41.30
2.41.30

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/aws/aws-sdk-java-v2/security/advisories/GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h
Cloudfront Security Information SECURITY
https://docs.aws.amazon.com/sdk-for-java/latest/developer-guide/security.html
Cloudfront Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/aws/aws-sdk-java-v2
Cloudfront Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/aws/aws-sdk-java-v2/blob/master/services/cloudfront/src/main/java/software/amazon/awssdk/services/cloudfront/CloudFrontUtilities.java

Frequently Asked Questions

What is GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h?
GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h is a security vulnerability in Cloudfront involving Improper Handling of Special Characters in CloudFront Signing Utilities under CWE-116: Improper Encoding or Escaping of Output.
Which Cloudfront versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 2.41.30 across affected packages: software.amazon.awssdk:cloudfront.
What version fixes GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h?
Upgrading to 2.41.30 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is cloudfront affected?
Yes, software.amazon.awssdk:cloudfront is affected in releases prior to 2.41.30. Upgrade your dependency to 2.41.30 or later.
What CWE is associated with GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h?
GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h is classified under CWE-116: Improper Encoding or Escaping of Output (The product prepares a structured message for communication with another component, but encoding or escaping of the data is either missing or done incorrectly. As a result, the intended structure of the message is not preserved.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=software.amazon.awssdk'. 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-443w-3rq3-5m5h",
  "modified" : "2026-03-27T20:43:16Z",
  "published" : "2026-03-27T20:43:16Z",
  "aliases" : [ ],
  "summary" : "AWS SDK for Java 2.0: Improper Handling of Special Characters in CloudFront Signing Utilities",
  "details" : "### Summary\nThis notification is related to the [CloudFront signing utilities](https://github.com/aws/aws-sdk-java-v2/blob/master/services/cloudfront/src/main/java/software/amazon/awssdk/services/cloudfront/CloudFrontUtilities.java) in the AWS SDK for Java v2, which are used to generate Amazon CloudFront signed URLs and signed cookies. A defense-in-depth enhancement has been implemented to improve handling of special characters, such as double quotes and backslashes, in input values.\n### Impact\nThe CloudFront signing utilities build policy documents that define access restrictions for signed URLs and cookies. If an application passes unsanitized input containing special characters to these utilities, the resulting policy document may not reflect the application's intended access restrictions. While the SDK was functioning safely within the requirements of the shared responsibility model, additional safeguards have been added to support secure customer implementations. Applications that already follow AWS security best practices for input validation are not impacted.\n### Impacted versions: \n2.18.33 - 2.41.29\n### Patches\nOn 2026.02.16, an enhancement was made to AWS SDK for Java v2 version 2.41.30. The enhancement ensures that special characters in input values are correctly handled. We recommend upgrading to the latest version.\n### Workarounds\nNo workarounds are needed, but customers should ensure that your application is following security best practices:\n\n* Implement proper input validation in your application code before passing values to CloudFront signing utilities\n* Update to the latest AWS SDK release on a regular basis\n* Follow [AWS security best practices for SDK configuration](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/sdk-for-java/latest/developer-guide/security.html)\n\n### Resources\nIf there are any questions or comments about this advisory, contact [AWS/Amazon] Security via our vulnerability reporting page or directly via email to [aws-security@amazon.com](mailto:aws-security@amazon.com). Please do not create a public GitHub issue.\n### Acknowledgement\nAWS SDK for Java 2.0 thanks the Amazon Inspector Security Research team for identifying this issue and working with us through the coordinated process.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:L/VA:N/SC:H/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "software.amazon.awssdk:cloudfront"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "2.18.33"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2.41.30"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 2.41.29"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/aws/aws-sdk-java-v2/security/advisories/GHSA-443w-3rq3-5m5h"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://docs.aws.amazon.com/sdk-for-java/latest/developer-guide/security.html"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/aws/aws-sdk-java-v2"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/aws/aws-sdk-java-v2/blob/master/services/cloudfront/src/main/java/software/amazon/awssdk/services/cloudfront/CloudFrontUtilities.java"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-116", "CWE-20" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2026-03-27T20:43:16Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}