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StrutsFramework / library · Apache

CVE-2016-4003

MEDIUM · 6.1 CVSS v3.0 Published 2016-04-12
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 2.3.24.1 or later.
See remediation →
68/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges

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
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the URLDecoder function in JRE before 1.8, as used in Apache Struts 2.x before 2.3.28, when using a single byte page encoding, allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via multi-byte characters in a url-encoded parameter.

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

XSS vulnerability in Apache Struts 2.x (before 2.3.28) stemming from the URLDecoder function in JRE before 1.8. When single-byte page encoding is used, attackers can inject arbitrary HTML/script via crafted multi-byte characters in URL-encoded parameters.

MitigationUpgrade Apache Struts to version 2.3.28 or later and ensure JRE/JDK is updated to version 1.8 or later to patch the vulnerable URLDecoder function.

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, <= 2.3.24.1

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
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/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 checks

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

  1. Identify Apache Struts version
    Locate the Struts core library file (e.g., struts2-core.jar) in the application classpath or webapp lib directory, then inspect its manifest or version metadata to determine the exact Struts version deployed.
    Affected if The identified version is between 2.0.0 and 2.3.24.1 inclusive.
  2. Confirm single-byte page encoding configuration
    Review the application configuration files (such as struts.xml, web.xml, or JSP page directives) for character encoding settings. Look for parameters like 'struts.i18n.encoding' set to single-byte encodings such as ISO-8859-1, or absence of UTF-8 encoding configuration.
    Affected if The application uses a single-byte character encoding (e.g., ISO-8859-1) rather than a multi-byte encoding like UTF-8 for page rendering.
  3. Check JRE/JDK version
    Execute 'java -version' or inspect the JRE/JDK installation to determine the Java runtime version in use.
    Affected if The JRE/JDK version is earlier than 1.8 (8).

You are affected if your Apache Struts version is between 2.0.0 and 2.3.24.1, combined with single-byte page encoding configuration and a JRE/JDK version before 1.8.

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 a release after 2.3.24.1
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Apache Struts to version 2.3.28 or later and ensure JRE/JDK is updated to version 1.8 or later to patch the vulnerable URLDecoder function.

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-2016-4003 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