#VU28238 Exposed dangerous method or function in dom4j - CVE-2020-10683

Vulnerability identifier: #VU28238

Vulnerability risk: Medium

CVSSv4.0: 1.7 [CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:N/UI:N/VC:L/VI:L/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/U:Green]

CVE-ID: CVE-2020-10683

CWE-ID: CWE-749

Exploitation vector: Network

Exploit availability: No

Vulnerable software:
dom4j
Server applications / Frameworks for developing and running applications

Vendor: dom4j

Description

The vulnerability allows a remote attacker to abuse implemented functionality.

The vulnerability exists due to dom4j allows by default external DTDs and External Entities. A remote attacker can abuse this functionality and perform XXE attack against application that uses dom4j default configuration.

Mitigation
Install updates from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

dom4j: 2.1.0 - 2.1.2

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External links
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1694235
https://cheatsheetseries.owasp.org/cheatsheets/XML_External_Entity_Prevention_Cheat_Sheet.html
https://github.com/dom4j/dom4j/commit/a8228522a99a02146106672a34c104adbda5c658
https://github.com/dom4j/dom4j/releases/tag/version-2.1.3
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20200518-0002/

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Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

Yes. This vulnerability can be exploited by a remote non-authenticated attacker via the Internet.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability.