Wss4jApplication · Apache
CVE-2015-0226
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 · uneditedApache WSS4J before 1.6.17 and 2.0.x before 2.0.2 improperly leaks information about decryption failures when decrypting an encrypted key or message data, which makes it easier for remote attackers to recover the plaintext form of a symmetric key via a series of crafted messages. NOTE: this vulnerability exists because of an incomplete fix for CVE-2011-2487.
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 confidenceApache WSS4J before 1.6.17 and 2.0.x before 2.0.2 leaks information about decryption failures when processing encrypted keys or message data, enabling oracle-style attacks that can recover plaintext symmetric keys. This is an incomplete fix for CVE-2011-2487.
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
Wss4jApplication
<= 1.6.16= 2.0= 2.0.0= 2.0.1CVSS 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
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
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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Locate the WSS4J library fileSearch for wss4j JAR files in your application lib directory, Maven repository, or classpath. Typical file names include wss4j-1.6.x.jar or wss4j-2.0.x.jar. Check your application's dependency management file (pom.xml, build.gradle, or similar) for the wss4j dependency declaration.Affected if The library file or dependency declaration exists in your application
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Determine the installed WSS4J versionOpen the wss4j JAR file or inspect the dependency version in your build configuration. Read the MANIFEST.MF file inside the JAR for the Implementation-Version attribute, or check the version field in your pom.xml or build.gradle for the wss4j dependency.Affected if The version number is 1.6.16 or lower, or 2.0, 2.0.0, or 2.0.1
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Verify WS-Security encryption is in useInspect your WS-Security configuration files (typically ws-security.properties, WSS4JInInterceptor or WSS4JOutInterceptor configuration in Spring or CXF, or custom callback handlers). Look for encryption-related properties such as action=Encrypt, encryptionUser, encryptionKeyIdentifier, or encryptingX509Token. Check if EncryptedData or EncryptedKey elements appear in your SOAP message processing configuration.Affected if Your application is configured to encrypt or decrypt SOAP messages using WSS4J
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Confirm decryption error handling is activeReview your application logs and error handling code for WSS4J decryption operations. Verify that your application processes incoming WS-Security encrypted messages or decrypts SAML assertions, encrypted keys, or XML encryption payloads. Check if your WSS4J configuration includes decryption properties like decryptingPwd, decryptingCert, or org.apache.wss4j.decryptionProp.Affected if Your application performs decryption operations on encrypted keys or message data
You are affected if your application uses Apache WSS4J version 1.6.16 or earlier, or version 2.0, 2.0.0, or 2.0.1, and processes encrypted messages or keys where decryption failure responses could be observed by an attacker.
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 Apache WSS4J to version 1.6.17 or 2.0.2 or later to patch the information disclosure vulnerability in decryption error handling.
Fix this in Wss4j
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,896.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2015-0226 — 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-2015-0226 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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