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Spring SecurityFramework / library · VMware

CVE-2016-9879

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-01-06
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable No privileges 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
An issue was discovered in Pivotal Spring Security before 3.2.10, 4.1.x before 4.1.4, and 4.2.x before 4.2.1. Spring Security does not consider URL path parameters when processing security constraints. By adding a URL path parameter with an encoded "/" to a request, an attacker may be able to bypass a security constraint. The root cause of this issue is a lack of clarity regarding the handling of path parameters in the Servlet Specification. Some Servlet containers include path parameters in the value returned for getPathInfo() and some do not. Spring Security uses the value returned by getPathInfo() as part of the process of mapping requests to security constraints. The unexpected presence of path parameters can cause a constraint to be bypassed. Users of Apache Tomcat (all current versions) are not affected by this vulnerability since Tomcat follows the guidance previously provided by the Servlet Expert group and strips path parameters from the value returned by getContextPath(), getServletPath(), and getPathInfo(). Users of other Servlet containers based on Apache Tomcat may or may not be affected depending on whether or not the handling of path parameters has been modified. Users of IBM WebSphere Application Server 8.5.x are known to be affected. Users of other containers that implement the Servlet specification may be affected.

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

Spring Security does not process URL path parameters when evaluating security constraints, allowing attackers to bypass authentication/authorization by appending encoded path parameters (like %2F) to URLs. The framework relies on getPathInfo() which some servlet containers (e.g., IBM WebSphere 8.5.x) do not strip path parameters from, causing security constraints to be evaluated against an unexpected path.

MitigationUpgrade Spring Security to version 3.2.10, 4.1.4, 4.2.1 or later; alternatively, ensure the servlet container strips path parameters per Servlet Specification guidance (as Apache Tomcat does).

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
Affected:= 3.2.0= 3.2.1= 3.2.2= 3.2.3= 3.2.4= 3.2.5= 3.2.6= 3.2.7= 3.2.8= 3.2.9= 4.1.0= 4.1.1
Websphere Application ServerApplication
Affected:= 8.5.0.0= 8.5.0.1= 8.5.0.2= 8.5.5.0= 8.5.5.1= 8.5.5.2= 8.5.5.3= 8.5.5.4= 8.5.5.5= 8.5.5.6= 8.5.5.7= 8.5.5.8

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
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/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 Spring Security version
    Examine the spring-security-core jar file MANIFEST.MF or check your dependency management (Maven pom.xml, Gradle build.gradle) for the spring-security-core version
    Affected if version is 3.2.0 through 3.2.9, 4.1.0, or 4.1.1
  2. Identify the servlet container
    Check the application server runtime environment - look for WebSphere-specific system properties or server logs indicating IBM WebSphere Application Server version
    Affected if running on IBM WebSphere Application Server 8.5.0.0 through 8.5.5.8
  3. Check for URL-based security constraints
    Review Spring Security configuration (XML config with intercept-url elements, or Java config with requestMatchers) for security constraints that restrict access based on URL patterns
    Affected if URL-based access rules are defined using ant patterns or path matching in security configuration
  4. Verify path parameter handling
    Test protected endpoints by appending encoded path parameters (such as %2F) to URL paths - for example, access /admin/%2Fdashboard and observe if access is granted when it should be denied
    Affected if requests with encoded path parameters bypass security constraints and grant unauthorized access

You are affected if you run any of the vulnerable Spring Security versions (3.2.0-3.2.9, 4.1.0-4.1.1) on IBM WebSphere Application Server 8.5.x and use URL-based security constraints.

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 Spring Security to version 3.2.10, 4.1.4, 4.2.1 or later; alternatively, ensure the servlet container strips path parameters per Servlet Specification guidance (as Apache Tomcat does).

Fix this in Spring Security Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,500
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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-2016-9879 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