TomcatWeb server / proxy · Apache

CVE-2013-4286

MEDIUM · 5.8 CVSS v2.0 Published 2014-02-26

Mitigation only

No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.

See remediation →

67/100

Remediation priority · Elevated

Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description

NVD · unedited

Apache Tomcat before 6.0.39, 7.x before 7.0.47, and 8.x before 8.0.0-RC3, when an HTTP connector or AJP connector is used, does not properly handle certain inconsistent HTTP request headers, which allows remote attackers to trigger incorrect identification of a request's length and conduct request-smuggling attacks via (1) multiple Content-Length headers or (2) a Content-Length header and a "Transfer-Encoding: chunked" header. NOTE: this vulnerability exists because of an incomplete fix for CVE-2005-2090.

Technical summary

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Apache Tomcat versions before 6.0.39, 7.x before 7.0.47, and 8.x before 8.0.0-RC3 improperly handle inconsistent HTTP request headers (multiple Content-Length headers or Content-Length with Transfer-Encoding: chunked) in HTTP/AJP connectors. This allows remote attackers to conduct request-smuggling attacks by manipulating header interpretation, exploiting incomplete mitigation from CVE-2005-2090.

MitigationUpgrade to Tomcat 6.0.39+, 7.0.47+, or 8.0.0-RC3+ and validate application compatibility, as this is a server-side request-smuggling vulnerability exploitable via malformed HTTP headers.

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

Affected products & versions

NVD · CPE data

TomcatWeb server / proxy

Affected:= 7.0.0= 7.0.1= 7.0.2= 7.0.3= 7.0.4= 7.0.10= 7.0.11= 7.0.12= 7.0.13= 7.0.14= 7.0.15= 7.0.16

CVSS breakdown

From the vector

Attack vector: Network
Complexity: M
Authentication: None
Confidentiality: Partial
Integrity: Partial
Availability: None

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

Am I affected?

dbcve checks

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

Identify Tomcat installation and version

Locate the Tomcat installation directory (common paths: /opt/tomcat, /usr/share/tomcat, or on Windows C:\Program Files\Apache Software Foundation\TomcatX). Check the RELEASE-NOTE file in the root directory or run the version command: catalina.sh version (Linux/Unix) or catalina.bat version (Windows)

Affected if Installed version is Apache Tomcat 6.0.x before 6.0.39, 7.x before 7.0.47, or 8.x before 8.0.0-RC3
Confirm exact 7.x version if applicable

If running Tomcat 7.x, verify the specific minor version from the release notes or version output. The vulnerable versions in the 7.x branch are: 7.0.0, 7.0.1, 7.0.2, 7.0.3, 7.0.4, 7.0.10, 7.0.11, 7.0.12, 7.0.13, 7.0.14, 7.0.15, and 7.0.16

Affected if The installed version matches any of: 7.0.0, 7.0.1, 7.0.2, 7.0.3, 7.0.4, 7.0.10, 7.0.11, 7.0.12, 7.0.13, 7.0.14, 7.0.15, or 7.0.16
Identify active connectors in server.xml

Open the conf/server.xml file and locate all <Connector> elements. Check the protocol attribute value for each connector. Look for connectors with protocol="HTTP/1.1" or protocol="AJP/1.3" (or their equivalent Coyote connector classes)

Affected if HTTP or AJP protocol connectors are defined and enabled in the server configuration

Environment is affected if running a vulnerable Tomcat version (6.0.x before 6.0.39, 7.x before 7.0.47, or 8.x before 8.0.0-RC3) with HTTP or AJP connectors enabled, allowing request-smuggling via malformed Content-Length or Transfer-Encoding headers

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

Remediation

From vendor data

Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime

Mitigation

Upgrade to Tomcat 6.0.39+, 7.0.47+, or 8.0.0-RC3+ and validate application compatibility, as this is a server-side request-smuggling vulnerability exploitable via malformed HTTP headers.

Fix this in Tomcat Scoped from the published advisory

Consultation3.0 h
Implementation4.0 h
Testing6.0 h
Review / QA2.0 h

15.0 hours of engineering $2,580

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Scan for this in your stack

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References

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2013-4286 in production — separate from our analysis above.

Notes0 Guidelines

Know something about CVE-2013-4286?

The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.

The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
A config change or rule that shut the vector down
A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon

No notes yet

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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

At a glance

A fix existsA vendor remedy is published

Severity 5.8 Medium

Exploit likelihood EPSS, next 30 days 16.8%

Affects: Tomcat

Remediation

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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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Check your environment

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.

Scan for this in your stack

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

Practitioner notes

No notes yet

Official description

Technical summary

Affected products & versions

CVSS breakdown

Am I affected?

Remediation

References