dbcve.org
Shibboleth SpApplication · Internet2

CVE-2009-3475

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v2.0 Published 2009-09-29
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
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
Internet2 Shibboleth Service Provider software 1.3.x before 1.3.3 and 2.x before 2.2.1, when using PKIX trust validation, does not properly handle a '\0' character in the subject or subjectAltName fields of a certificate, which allows remote man-in-the-middle attackers to spoof arbitrary SSL servers via a crafted certificate issued by a legitimate Certification Authority, a related issue to CVE-2009-2408.

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

Internet2 Shibboleth SP versions 1.3.x before 1.3.3 and 2.x before 2.2.1 fail to properly handle null byte characters in certificate subject and subjectAltName fields during PKIX trust validation. This allows remote MITM attackers to spoof arbitrary SSL servers using legitimately CA-issued certificates that contain \0 characters, effectively bypassing certificate chain validation.

MitigationUpgrade Shibboleth SP to version 1.3.3 or 2.2.1 or later to obtain the patched certificate validation logic. Additionally, ensure any certificates in use do not contain null bytes in subject/altName fields.

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
Shibboleth SpApplication
Affected:= 1.3.1= 1.3.2= 1.3f= 2.0= 2.1= 2.2

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
Partial
Integrity
Partial
Availability
Partial

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

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. Identify installed Shibboleth SP version
    Run 'shibd -v' or check the package manager: 'rpm -q shibboleth' (RHEL/CentOS), 'dpkg -l shibboleth' (Debian/Ubuntu). If running as a Windows service, check the program version property of shibd.exe in the installation directory.
    Affected if The installed version is 1.3.1, 1.3.2, 1.3f, 2.0, 2.1, or 2.2 (any version before 1.3.3 or 2.2.1).
  2. Locate the Shibboleth configuration file
    Find shibboleth2.xml in the etc/shibboleth directory (Linux/Unix typically at /etc/shibboleth/shibboleth2.xml, Windows in the conf subdirectory of the installation path).
    Affected if The configuration file exists and the SP is in use.
  3. Verify SSL/TLS certificate handling is configured
    Open shibboleth2.xml and search for <SSO>, <SecurityConfig>, or <TransportConfig> elements. Check for 'ssl' or 'tls' related attributes and verify that the SP is configured to validate certificates for back-channel communications.
    Affected if The SP is configured to perform SSL/TLS certificate validation for any service provider functionality.
  4. Inspect certificates used by the SP
    Examine certificate files referenced in shibboleth2.xml (keyPath, certPath attributes) and any metadata certificates. Use 'openssl x509 -text -in <certfile>' to display certificate subject and subjectAltName fields.
    Affected if Any certificate in use contains a null byte (\0) character within the subject or subjectAltName fields.

You are affected if your Shibboleth SP version is 1.3.1 through 1.3.2, 1.3f, or 2.0 through 2.2 AND your SP performs SSL/TLS certificate validation with certificates that may contain null bytes in their subject or subjectAltName fields.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade Shibboleth SP to version 1.3.3 or 2.2.1 or later to obtain the patched certificate validation logic. Additionally, ensure any certificates in use do not contain null bytes in subject/altName fields.

Fix this in Shibboleth Sp Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation12.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
27.0 hours of engineering $4,700
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $7,520.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2009-3475 — 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-2009-3475 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