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Debian LinuxOperating system · Debian

CVE-2016-0763

MEDIUM · 6.3 CVSS v3.0 Published 2016-02-25
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
69/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable 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
The setGlobalContext method in org/apache/naming/factory/ResourceLinkFactory.java in Apache Tomcat 7.x before 7.0.68, 8.x before 8.0.31, and 9.x before 9.0.0.M3 does not consider whether ResourceLinkFactory.setGlobalContext callers are authorized, which allows remote authenticated users to bypass intended SecurityManager restrictions and read or write to arbitrary application data, or cause a denial of service (application disruption), via a web application that sets a crafted global context.

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

A missing authorization check in the setGlobalContext method of Apache Tomcat's ResourceLinkFactory allows authenticated remote users to bypass SecurityManager restrictions. Attackers can read/write arbitrary application data or cause denial of service by leveraging a malicious web application that sets a crafted global context.

MitigationUpgrade Apache Tomcat to version 7.0.68+, 8.0.31+, or 9.0.0.M3+ to obtain the patched version that includes authorization checks in the setGlobalContext method.

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
Debian LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 7.0= 8.0
TomcatWeb server / proxy
Affected:= 7.0.0= 7.0.2= 7.0.4= 7.0.5= 7.0.6= 7.0.10= 7.0.11= 7.0.12= 7.0.14= 7.0.16= 7.0.19= 7.0.20
Ubuntu LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 12.04= 14.04= 15.10= 16.04

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
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
Low

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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 checks

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

  1. Locate Apache Tomcat installation
    Check common installation paths such as /usr/share/tomcat*, /opt/tomcat*, or the CATALINA_HOME environment variable. On Debian/Ubuntu, also check /var/lib/tomcat* or /etc/tomcat*.
    Affected if Apache Tomcat is installed and running.
  2. Determine installed Tomcat version
    Inspect the version string in the release.jar file within the Tomcat lib directory, or run 'java -cp $CATALINA_HOME/lib/catalina.jar org.apache.catalina.util.ServerInfo' to retrieve the version programmatically.
    Affected if The version is 7.0.x (any version from 7.0.0 through 7.0.x before 7.0.68). The listed affected versions include 7.0.0, 7.0.2, 7.0.4, 7.0.5, 7.0.6, 7.0.10, 7.0.11, 7.0.12, 7.0.14, 7.0.16, 7.0.19, and 7.0.20, but the vulnerability exists in all 7.0.x versions prior to 7.0.68.
  3. Verify if SecurityManager is enabled
    Check the catalina.sh or catalina.bat startup script for the -security flag, or inspect the server.xml configuration file for a <Server> element with the 'security' attribute set. On Debian/Ubuntu, check /etc/default/tomcat* for CATALINA_SECURITY=yes.
    Affected if The SecurityManager is enabled (the vulnerability allows bypassing SecurityManager restrictions, so this check determines if the flaw is relevant to the environment).
  4. Check for ResourceLinkFactory configuration
    Inspect the context.xml or server.xml files for <ResourceLink> elements in the GlobalNamingResources section, which configure the ResourceLinkFactory that contains the vulnerable setGlobalContext method.
    Affected if ResourceLinkFactory resources are configured and the application uses global resources through ResourceLink elements.

A user is affected if they run Apache Tomcat 7.0.x versions prior to 7.0.68 with the SecurityManager enabled and have ResourceLinkFactory configured for global resource sharing.

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 Apache Tomcat to version 7.0.68+, 8.0.31+, or 9.0.0.M3+ to obtain the patched version that includes authorization checks in the setGlobalContext method.

Fix this in Debian Linux Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing12.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
28.0 hours of engineering $4,760
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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-2016-0763 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