dbcve.org
JdkApplication · Sun

CVE-2008-3107

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2008-07-09
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 6 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Unspecified vulnerability in the Virtual Machine in Sun Java Runtime Environment (JRE) in JDK and JRE 6 before Update 7, JDK and JRE 5.0 before Update 16, and SDK and JRE 1.4.x before 1.4.2_18 allows context-dependent attackers to gain privileges via an untrusted (1) application or (2) applet, as demonstrated by an application or applet that grants itself privileges to (a) read local files, (b) write to local files, or (c) execute local programs.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

This is a privilege escalation vulnerability in the Java Virtual Machine sandbox. Untrusted applets or applications can bypass Java security restrictions to gain elevated privileges, allowing them to read local files, write to local files, and execute local programs with full system access.

MitigationUpgrade to patched Java versions: JDK/JRE 6 Update 7 or later, 5.0 Update 16 or later, or 1.4.2_18 or later. Remove or disable untrusted applet support if upgrades are not feasible.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
JdkApplication
Affected:<= 5.0<= 6= 5.0= 6
JreApplication
Affected:<= 1.4.2_17<= 5.0<= 6= 1.4.2= 1.4.2_01= 1.4.2_02= 1.4.2_03= 1.4.2_3= 1.4.2_04= 1.4.2_05= 1.4.2_06= 1.4.2_07
SdkApplication
Affected:<= 1.4.2_17= 1.4.2_02= 1.4.2_03= 1.4.2_04= 1.4.2_05= 1.4.2_06= 1.4.2_07= 1.4.2_08= 1.4.2_09= 1.4.2_10= 1.4.2_11= 1.4.2_12

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check if Java is installed
    Run 'java -version' from command line to display the installed JRE/JDK version information
    Affected if No Java installation is found or the command fails
  2. Identify exact Java version
    Run 'java -version 2>&1' and examine the full version string (for example: 1.6.0, 1.5.0, 1.4.2_17)
    Affected if The version displayed matches any of the affected versions listed: 1.4.2 through 1.4.2_17, any 5.0 version, or any 6.x version before Update 7
  3. Determine if untrusted applet support is enabled
    Check browser Java plugin settings or Java Control Panel > Security > Enable Java content in browser. Also verify if the system runs untrusted Java Web Start applications or applets.
    Affected if Java content in browser is enabled and the system runs or could run untrusted applets or Java Web Start applications
  4. Verify Java Security Manager configuration
    Inspect Java security policy files (java.policy) in the JRE lib/security directory and check whether applications run with a SecurityManager enabled
    Affected if Applications run without a SecurityManager or with permissive policy settings that allow untrusted code execution

You are affected if Java is installed with any version from 1.4.2 through 1.4.2_17, any 5.0 version, or any 6.x version before Update 7, AND untrusted applets or applications can be executed in your environment.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 6
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to patched Java versions: JDK/JRE 6 Update 7 or later, 5.0 Update 16 or later, or 1.4.2_18 or later. Remove or disable untrusted applet support if upgrades are not feasible.

Recommended fix High confidence

JDK/JRE 6 Update 7+, JDK/JRE 5.0 Update 16+, or SDK/JRE 1.4.2_18+

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed Java version by running 'java -version' or checking the Java Control Panel
  2. 2. For JDK/JRE 6: Upgrade to version 6 Update 7 or later
  3. 3. For JDK/JRE 5.0: Upgrade to version 5.0 Update 16 or later
  4. 4. For SDK/JRE 1.4.x: Upgrade to version 1.4.2_18 or later
  5. 5. Download the updated Java Runtime Environment from the official Oracle Java Archive (for older versions) or Oracle's main download page
  6. 6. Install the updated Java version following the platform-specific installation instructions
  7. 7. Verify the installation by running 'java -version' and confirming the updated version number
  8. 8. Update any JAVA_HOME environment variables or path configurations to point to the new installation if necessary
Caveat Upgrading Java versions may cause incompatibility with legacy applications that rely on older Java features or specific runtime behaviors; regression testing is recommended

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Jdk Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
24.0 hours of engineering $4,160
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,656.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2008-3107 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2008-3107 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data