dbcve.org
Enterprise Linux DesktopOperating system · Redhat

CVE-2013-5842

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2013-10-16
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
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 Oracle Java SE 7u40 and earlier, Java SE 6u60 and earlier, Java SE 5.0u51 and earlier, and Java SE Embedded 7u40 and earlier allows remote attackers to affect confidentiality, integrity, and availability via unknown vectors related to Libraries, a different vulnerability than CVE-2013-5850.

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 · moderate confidence

A critical, unspecified vulnerability in Oracle Java SE and Java SE Embedded libraries allows remote attackers complete compromise of confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The vulnerability affects Java 7u40 and earlier, 6u60 and earlier, 5.0u51 and earlier versions, and is distinct from CVE-2013-5850.

MitigationApply Oracle Critical Patch Update October 2013 or later to obtain patched Java versions beyond the vulnerable releases (7u40, 6u60, 5.0u51). Remove or disable older Java installations where patching is 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
Enterprise Linux DesktopOperating system
Affected:= 5.0= 6.0
Enterprise Linux EusOperating system
Affected:= 6.4
Enterprise Linux ServerOperating system
Affected:= 5.0= 6.0
Enterprise Linux Server AusOperating system
Affected:= 6.4
Enterprise Linux WorkstationOperating system
Affected:= 5.0= 6.0
Ubuntu LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 10.04= 12.04= 12.10= 13.04= 13.10
JdkApplication
Affected:= 1.5.0= 1.6.0= 1.7.0
JreApplication
Affected:= 1.5.0= 1.6.0= 1.7.0

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. Determine if Java is installed
    Run 'java -version' or 'which java' to check for Java installations on the system
    Affected if No Java is found - the system is not affected by this specific Java vulnerability
  2. Identify the exact Java version
    Run 'java -version 2>&1' to obtain the full version string (for example: java version '1.7.0_40' or '1.6.0_60')
    Affected if The version shown is 1.7.0 (any update prior to 40), 1.6.0 (any update prior to 60), or 1.5.0 (any update prior to 51)
  3. Check for multiple Java installations
    Search for all java executables with 'find /usr -name java 2>/dev/null' and check each version with 'path/to/java -version'
    Affected if Any installed Java version falls within the vulnerable ranges regardless of other installations
  4. Verify the Java vendor and update number
    Examine the complete version output including the update number (for example: 1.7.0_40 means version 7 update 40). On Linux also check 'rpm -qa | grep -i jdk' or 'dpkg -l | grep -i openjdk' for package version details
    Affected if The reported Java version matches 1.5.0 through 1.5.0u50, 1.6.0 through 1.6.0u59, or 1.7.0 through 1.7.0u39

A system is affected if any installed Oracle Java SE or Java SE Embedded version is 1.5.0u51 or earlier, 1.6.0u60 or earlier, or 1.7.0u40 or earlier.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply Oracle Critical Patch Update October 2013 or later to obtain patched Java versions beyond the vulnerable releases (7u40, 6u60, 5.0u51). Remove or disable older Java installations where patching is not feasible.

Recommended fix High confidence

Java 7u45 or later (Java 8 recommended for long-term support)

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed Java version by running 'java -version' or checking /usr/lib/jvm/
  2. 2. For RHEL/CentOS systems: Run 'yum update java-1.7.0-openjdk' or 'yum update java-1.6.0-openjdk' to apply available security patches
  3. 3. For Ubuntu/Debian systems: Run 'apt-get update && apt-get install openjdk-7-jdk' or 'apt-get install openjdk-6-jdk'
  4. 4. Verify the upgraded version with 'java -version' and ensure it shows 7u45, 6u61, or later
  5. 5. Update any JAVA_HOME environment variables to point to the new installation path if necessary
  6. 6. Restart any running Java applications or services to use the updated runtime
Caveat Upgrading Java versions may cause compatibility issues with legacy applications that rely on specific Java version behaviors or APIs; test thoroughly before production deployment

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

Fix this in Enterprise Linux Desktop Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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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-2013-5842 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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