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StrutsFramework / library · Apache

CVE-2016-0785

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2016-04-12
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.3.20.3 or later.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
Apache Struts 2.x before 2.3.28 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a "%{}" sequence in a tag attribute, aka forced double OGNL evaluation.

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

Apache Struts 2.x before 2.3.28 is vulnerable to forced double OGNL evaluation. Attackers can inject malicious OGNL expressions via the '%{}' syntax in tag attributes. Because the framework evaluates OGNL twice, certain sanitization or escaping applied in the first pass is bypassed, allowing arbitrary code execution on the server.

MitigationUpgrade Apache Struts to version 2.3.28 or later (preferably a current supported release). Validate all user input before rendering in tag attributes, and audit dependencies for other vulnerable Struts versions.

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
StrutsFramework / library
Affected:>= 2.0.0, < 2.3.20.3>= 2.3.21, <= 2.3.24.1

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
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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. Identify Struts2 core library version
    Locate the struts2-core.jar file in your application deployment (typically in WEB-INF/lib/). Check the MANIFEST.MF file inside the jar for the Implementation-Version, or inspect your pom.xml if using Maven, or check the build.gradle for Gradle projects.
    Affected if The version is 2.0.0 through 2.3.20.2, OR 2.3.21 through 2.3.24.1
  2. Scan WAR or EAR deployment archives
    List all JAR files in your deployed application and search for any struts2-core JAR. Note that multiple versions may coexist in complex applications. Use commands like 'jar tf' or unzip -l to list contents.
    Affected if Any struts2-core JAR found falls within the affected version ranges
  3. Check application dependencies for Struts
    Review your application's dependency tree. For Maven projects, run 'mvn dependency:tree' and look for struts2-core. For other build systems, inspect the declared dependencies in your build configuration files.
    Affected if A dependency declares a struts2-core version in the affected ranges
  4. Identify tag attribute usage in application code
    Search your JSP and Freemarker template files for the '%{' syntax within tag attributes, for example: '<s:property value="%{@someClass@getMethod()}"/>'. This pattern triggers double OGNL evaluation.
    Affected if The application code contains tag attributes using the '%{}' syntax for OGNL expression evaluation
  5. Audit all deployed applications on the server
    If hosting multiple applications, check each WAR/EAR file deployed on the servlet container (Tomcat, JBoss, WebSphere, etc.) for Struts2 libraries, as vulnerable versions may exist in any deployed application.
    Affected if Any deployed application contains a vulnerable Struts2 version

You are affected if your application uses a Struts2 library version within 2.0.0 to 2.3.20.2 or 2.3.21 to 2.3.24.1 AND utilizes tag attributes with the '%{}' OGNL syntax.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 2.3.20.3 or later
Fixed in 2.3.20.3
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Apache Struts to version 2.3.28 or later (preferably a current supported release). Validate all user input before rendering in tag attributes, and audit dependencies for other vulnerable Struts versions.

Fix this in Struts 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
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $7,616.

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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-2016-0785 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