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The vulnerability CVE-2024-38374 is an XML External Entity (XXE) injection flaw within the CycloneDX Core Java library’s XML validation component. When processing a specially crafted CycloneDX Bill of Materials (BOM) file in XML format, the validator insecurely parses XML input. An attacker can exploit this by embedding a malicious XML entity within the BOM file. If this entity references an external system, the parser may initiate unauthorized out-of-band interactions, leading to the disclosure of sensitive internal files from the server’s filesystem. This occurs because the underlying XML parser was not configured to disable external entity resolution, allowing the evaluation of user-controlled data. The issue was a follow-on from a previous incomplete patch that only secured the BOM parsing functionality but left the validation step vulnerable.
Platform: CycloneDX Core Java
Version: >=2.1.0, <11.0.1
Vulnerability: XXE Injection
Severity: High
date: 2024-11-10
Prediction: Patch available
What Undercode Say:
Example of a malicious XML entity <!DOCTYPE bom [ <!ENTITY xxe SYSTEM "file:///etc/passwd"> ]>
// Code snippet showing insecure XML parsing (conceptual)
DocumentBuilderFactory factory = DocumentBuilderFactory.newInstance();
// Missing security features like:
// factory.setFeature("http://apache.org/xml/features/disallow-doctype-decl", true);
How Exploit:
Craft malicious BOM.
Trigger validation.
Exfiltrate data.
Protection from this CVE
Upgrade to v11.0.1.
Disable external entities.
Use JSON BOMs.
Impact:
File disclosure.
Server data leak.
🎯Let’s Practice Exploiting & Learn Patching For Free:
Sources:
Reported By: github.com
Extra Source Hub:
Undercode
