Spring SecurityFramework / library · VMware
CVE-2014-0097
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 · uneditedThe ActiveDirectoryLdapAuthenticator in Spring Security 3.2.0 to 3.2.1 and 3.1.0 to 3.1.5 does not check the password length. If the directory allows anonymous binds then it may incorrectly authenticate a user who supplies an empty password.
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 confidenceThe ActiveDirectoryLdapAuthenticator in Spring Security 3.1.0-3.1.5 and 3.2.0-3.2.1 fails to validate password length. When the directory server allows anonymous binds, an attacker can bypass authentication by supplying an empty password.
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
Spring SecurityFramework / library
= 3.1.0= 3.1.1= 3.1.2= 3.1.3= 3.1.4= 3.1.5= 3.2.0= 3.2.1CVSS 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
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- Low
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify installed Spring Security versionInspect your project's dependency management file (pom.xml, build.gradle, or MANIFEST.MF in spring-security-core jar) to find the exact Spring Security version in useAffected if The version is 3.1.0, 3.1.1, 3.1.2, 3.1.3, 3.1.4, 3.1.5, 3.2.0, or 3.2.1
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Locate ActiveDirectoryLdapAuthenticator configurationSearch application configuration files (XML config with <ldap-auth-provider>, Java config with ActiveDirectoryLdapAuthenticator beans, or security-context.xml) for references to ActiveDirectoryLdapAuthenticator or ActiveDirectoryLdapAuthenticationProviderAffected if ActiveDirectoryLdapAuthenticator or ActiveDirectoryLdapAuthenticationProvider is configured as an authentication provider
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Check LDAP anonymous bind settingReview your LDAP server configuration or consult your directory administrator to determine if the ActiveDirectory or LDAP server allows anonymous binds (anonymous-logon or similar setting enabled)Affected if The directory server permits anonymous authentication binds
You are affected if your environment uses Spring Security versions 3.1.0-3.2.1 with ActiveDirectoryLdapAuthenticator configured AND your directory server allows anonymous binds, allowing empty password authentication bypass.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 dataUpgrade to Spring Security 3.2.2+ or 3.1.6+ which includes password length validation, or disable anonymous binds on the directory server as a compensating control.
Fix this in Spring Security
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,664.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2014-0097 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2014-0097 in production — separate from our analysis above.
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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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