CVE-2017-5638

Apache Software Foundation Apache Struts

Published 11 Mar 2017 · updated 17 Jun 2026 · Analyzed

9.8 Critical · CVSS 3.1, NVD

Exploited in the wild

CISA added this to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 3 Nov 2021, with a remediation deadline of 3 May 2022 for US federal agencies. It has been used in ransomware campaigns.

Required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Description

The Jakarta Multipart parser in Apache Struts 2 2.3.x before 2.3.32 and 2.5.x before 2.5.10.1 has incorrect exception handling and error-message generation during file-upload attempts, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands via a crafted Content-Type, Content-Disposition, or Content-Length HTTP header, as exploited in the wild in March 2017 with a Content-Type header containing a #cmd= string.

References

blog.talosintelligence.com/2017/03/apache-0-day-exploited.html · Exploit, Third Party Advisory
blog.trendmicro.com/trendlabs-security-intelligence/cve-2017-5638-apache-struts-vulnerability-remote-code-execution/ · Exploit, Third Party Advisory
www.arubanetworks.com/assets/alert/ARUBA-PSA-2017-002.txt · Third Party Advisory
www.eweek.com/security/apache-struts-vulnerability-under-attack.html · Press/Media Coverage, Third Party Advisory
www.oracle.com/technetwork/security-advisory/cpujul2017-3236622.html · Patch, Third Party Advisory
www.securityfocus.com/bid/96729 · Broken Link, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
www.securitytracker.com/id/1037973 · Broken Link, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
arstechnica.com/security/2017/03/critical-vulnerability-under-massive-attack-imperils-high-impact-sites/ · Exploit, Press/Media Coverage
cwiki.apache.org/confluence/display/WW/S2-045 · Mitigation, Vendor Advisory
cwiki.apache.org/confluence/display/WW/S2-046 · Mitigation, Vendor Advisory
exploit-db.com/exploits/41570 · Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
git1-us-west.apache.org/repos/asf?p=struts.git%3Ba=commit%3Bh=352306493971e7d5a756d61780d57a76eb1f519a · Broken Link
git1-us-west.apache.org/repos/asf?p=struts.git%3Ba=commit%3Bh=6b8272ce47160036ed120a48345d9aa884477228 · Broken Link
github.com/mazen160/struts-pwn · Exploit
github.com/rapid7/metasploit-framework/issues/8064 · Exploit, Issue Tracking
h20566.www2.hpe.com/hpsc/doc/public/display?docLocale=en_US&docId=emr_na-hpesbgn03733en_us · Broken Link
h20566.www2.hpe.com/hpsc/doc/public/display?docLocale=en_US&docId=emr_na-hpesbgn03749en_us · Third Party Advisory
h20566.www2.hpe.com/hpsc/doc/public/display?docLocale=en_US&docId=emr_na-hpesbhf03723en_us · Third Party Advisory
isc.sans.edu/diary/22169 · Exploit, Third Party Advisory
lists.apache.org/thread.html/r1125f3044a0946d1e7e6f125a6170b58d413ebd4a95157e4608041c7%40%3Cannounce.apache.org%3E · Mailing List
lists.apache.org/thread.html/r6d03e45b81eab03580cf7f8bb51cb3e9a1b10a2cc0c6a2d3cc92ed0c%40%3Cannounce.apache.org%3E · Mailing List
lists.apache.org/thread.html/r90890afea72a9571d666820b2fe5942a0a5f86be406fa31da3dd0922%40%3Cannounce.apache.org%3E · Mailing List
nmap.org/nsedoc/scripts/http-vuln-cve2017-5638.html · Exploit, Third Party Advisory
packetstormsecurity.com/files/141494/S2-45-poc.py.txt · Broken Link, Exploit, Third Party Advisory
security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20170310-0001/ · Third Party Advisory