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DotcmsApplication

CVE-2017-5344

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-02-17
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 3.6.1 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Public exploit 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 dotCMS through 3.6.1. The findChildrenByFilter() function which is called by the web accessible path /categoriesServlet performs string interpolation and direct SQL query execution. SQL quote escaping and a keyword blacklist were implemented in a new class, SQLUtil (main/java/com/dotmarketing/common/util/SQLUtil.java), as part of the remediation of CVE-2016-8902; however, these can be overcome in the case of the q and inode parameters to the /categoriesServlet path. Overcoming these controls permits a number of blind boolean SQL injection vectors in either parameter. The /categoriesServlet web path can be accessed remotely and without authentication in a default dotCMS deployment.

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
How this class of weakness works · CWE-89

User input is woven into a database query, letting an attacker rewrite the query's logic. From there they can read, alter, or destroy data — frequently the entire database. The reliable fix is parameterised queries (prepared statements), so input is always treated as data and never as SQL.

General guidance for the sql injection class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →

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
DotcmsApplication
Affected:<= 3.6.1

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
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 3.6.1
Recommended fix Moderate confidence

dotCMS 3.7.0 or later (latest stable release)

  1. Identify the current dotCMS version by checking the admin panel or version file (typically in /dotCMS/WEB-INF/lib/dotcms-*.jar or via System Information in admin)
  2. Download the latest stable dotCMS release from the official dotCMS repository (github.com/dotCMS/dotcms/releases) or from dotcms.com
  3. Before upgrading, perform a full backup of the database and the entire dotCMS installation directory
  4. Deploy the new version by replacing the existing dotCMS files, preserving custom configurations, plugins, and the data directory
  5. Restart the application server (Tomcat, JBoss, etc.) that hosts dotCMS
  6. Verify the upgrade by logging into the admin panel and checking the version information
  7. Test the /categoriesServlet endpoint to confirm it no longer accepts malicious SQL injection payloads in the q or inode parameters
Caveat Upgrading between major dotCMS versions may require migration steps; review upgrade guides for database schema changes and configuration adjustments. Custom plugins may need compatibility testing.

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

We can identify the exact fixed release, upgrade, and verify it in staging — typical engagement from $2,300. Get the upgrade done

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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-2017-5344 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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