CVE-2025-24813 - Deserialization of Untrusted Data

Severity

98%

Complexity

39%

Confidentiality

98%

Path Equivalence: 'file.Name' (Internal Dot) leading to Remote Code Execution and/or Information disclosure and/or malicious content added to uploaded files via write enabled Default Servlet in Apache Tomcat. This issue affects Apache Tomcat: from 11.0.0-M1 through 11.0.2, from 10.1.0-M1 through 10.1.34, from 9.0.0.M1 through 9.0.98. If all of the following were true, a malicious user was able to view security sensitive files and/or inject content into those files: - writes enabled for the default servlet (disabled by default) - support for partial PUT (enabled by default) - a target URL for security sensitive uploads that was a sub-directory of a target URL for public uploads - attacker knowledge of the names of security sensitive files being uploaded - the security sensitive files also being uploaded via partial PUT If all of the following were true, a malicious user was able to perform remote code execution: - writes enabled for the default servlet (disabled by default) - support for partial PUT (enabled by default) - application was using Tomcat's file based session persistence with the default storage location - application included a library that may be leveraged in a deserialization attack Users are recommended to upgrade to version 11.0.3, 10.1.35 or 9.0.98, which fixes the issue.

Path Equivalence: 'file.Name' (Internal Dot) leading to Remote Code Execution and/or Information disclosure and/or malicious content added to uploaded files via write enabled Default Servlet in Apache Tomcat. This issue affects Apache Tomcat: from 11.0.0-M1 through 11.0.2, from 10.1.0-M1 through 10.1.34, from 9.0.0.M1 through 9.0.98. If all of the following were true, a malicious user was able to view security sensitive files and/or inject content into those files: - writes enabled for the default servlet (disabled by default) - support for partial PUT (enabled by default) - a target URL for security sensitive uploads that was a sub-directory of a target URL for public uploads - attacker knowledge of the names of security sensitive files being uploaded - the security sensitive files also being uploaded via partial PUT If all of the following were true, a malicious user was able to perform remote code execution: - writes enabled for the default servlet (disabled by default) - support for partial PUT (enabled by default) - application was using Tomcat's file based session persistence with the default storage location - application included a library that may be leveraged in a deserialization attack Users are recommended to upgrade to version 11.0.3, 10.1.35 or 9.0.99, which fixes the issue.

CVSS 3.1 Base Score 9.8. CVSS Attack Vector: network. CVSS Attack Complexity: low. CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Demo Examples

Deserialization of Untrusted Data

CWE-502

This code snippet deserializes an object from a file and uses it as a UI button:


               
}
in.close();

This code does not attempt to verify the source or contents of the file before deserializing it. An attacker may be able to replace the intended file with a file that contains arbitrary malicious code which will be executed when the button is pressed.

To mitigate this, explicitly define final readObject() to prevent deserialization. An example of this is:


               
throw new java.io.IOException("Cannot be deserialized"); }

Deserialization of Untrusted Data

CWE-502

In Python, the Pickle library handles the serialization and deserialization processes. In this example derived from [R.502.7], the code receives and parses data, and afterwards tries to authenticate a user based on validating a token.


               
}
raise AuthFail

Unfortunately, the code does not verify that the incoming data is legitimate. An attacker can construct a illegitimate, serialized object "AuthToken" that instantiates one of Python's subprocesses to execute arbitrary commands. For instance,the attacker could construct a pickle that leverages Python's subprocess module, which spawns new processes and includes a number of arguments for various uses. Since Pickle allows objects to define the process for how they should be unpickled, the attacker can direct the unpickle process to call Popen in the subprocess module and execute /bin/sh.

Demo Examples

Inconsistent Interpretation of HTTP Requests ('HTTP Request Smuggling')

CWE-444

In the following example, a malformed HTTP request is sent to a website that includes a proxy server and a web server with the intent of poisoning the cache to associate one webpage with another malicious webpage.


               
Connection: Keep-Alive

When this request is sent to the proxy server, the proxy server parses the POST request in the first seven lines, and encounters the two "Content-Length" headers. The proxy server ignores the first header, so it assumes the request has a body of length 44 bytes. Therefore, it treats the data in the next three lines that contain exactly 44 bytes as the first request's body. The proxy then parses the last three lines which it treats as the client's second request.

The request is forwarded by the proxy server to the web server. Unlike the proxy, the web server uses the first "Content-Length" header and considers that the first POST request has no body, and the second request is the line with the first GET (note that the second GET is parsed by the web server as the value of the "Bla" header).

The requests the web server sees are "POST /foobar.html" and "GET /poison.html", so it sends back two responses with the contents of the "foobar.html" page and the "poison.html" page, respectively. The proxy matches these responses to the two requests it thinks were sent by the client "POST /foobar.html" and "GET /page_to_poison.html". If the response is cacheable, the proxy caches the contents of "poison.html" under the URL "page_to_poison.html", and the cache is poisoned! Any client requesting "page_to_poison.html" from the proxy would receive the "poison.html" page.

When a website includes both a proxy server and a web server some protection against this type of attack can be achieved by installing a web application firewall, or use a web server that includes a stricter HTTP parsing procedure or make all webpages non-cacheable.

Additionally, if a web application includes a Java servlet for processing requests, the servlet can check for multiple "Content-Length" headers and if they are found the servlet can return an error response thereby preventing the poison page to be cached, as shown below.


               
}
} catch (Exception ex) {...}// Set up response writer object
}// check for multiple content length headers
count++;
// output error response
// process request

Inconsistent Interpretation of HTTP Requests ('HTTP Request Smuggling')

CWE-444

In the following example, a malformed HTTP request is sent to a website that includes a web server with a firewall with the intent of bypassing the web server firewall to smuggle malicious code into the system..


               
Connection: Keep-Alive

When this request is sent to the web server, the first POST request has a content-length of 49,223 bytes, and the firewall treats the line with 49,152 copies of "z" and the lines with an additional lines with 71 bytes as its body (49,152+71=49,223). The firewall then continues to parse what it thinks is the second request starting with the line with the third POST request.

Note that there is no CRLF after the "Bla: " header so the POST in the line is parsed as the value of the "Bla:" header. Although the line contains the pattern identified with a worm ("cmd.exe"), it is not blocked, since it is considered part of a header value. Therefore, "cmd.exe" is smuggled through the firewall.

When the request is passed through the firewall the web server the first request is ignored because the web server does not find an expected "Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded" header, and starts parsing the second request.

This second request has a content-length of 30 bytes, which is exactly the length of the next two lines up to the space after the "Bla:" header. And unlike the firewall, the web server processes the final POST as a separate third request and the "cmd.exe" worm is smuggled through the firewall to the web server.

To avoid this attack a Web server firewall product must be used that is designed to prevent this type of attack.

Overview

First reported 2 months ago

2025-03-10 17:15:00

Last updated 1 month ago

2025-03-21 18:15:00

Affected Software

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 1

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 10

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 11

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 12

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 13

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 14

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 15

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 16

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 17

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 18

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 19

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 2

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 20

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 21

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 22

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 23

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 24

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 25

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 26

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 27

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 3

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 4

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 5

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 6

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 7

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 8

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat 9.0.0 Milestone 9

9.0.0

Apache Software Foundation Tomcat

Stay updated

ExploitPedia is constantly evolving. Sign up to receive a notification when we release additional functionality.

Get in touch

If you'd like to report a bug or have any suggestions for improvements then please do get in touch with us using this form. We will get back to you as soon as we can.