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NifiApplication · Apache

CVE-2017-5636

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-10-19
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
In Apache NiFi before 0.7.2 and 1.x before 1.1.2 in a cluster environment, the proxy chain serialization/deserialization is vulnerable to an injection attack where a carefully crafted username could impersonate another user and gain their permissions on a replicated request to another node.

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 NiFi versions before 0.7.2 and 1.x before 1.1.2 contain a deserialization injection vulnerability in the proxy chain serialization/deserialization mechanism used in cluster communications. An attacker can craft a malicious username containing injection payloads that, when deserialized on another cluster node, allows impersonation of that user and inheritance of their permissions on replicated requests.

MitigationUpgrade Apache NiFi to version 0.7.2, 1.1.2, or later. In the meantime, consider disabling cluster mode or implementing network-level access controls to limit exposure to untrusted networks.

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
NifiApplication
Affected:= 0.7.0= 0.7.1= 1.1.0= 1.1.1

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

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 NiFi installation and version
    Locate the NiFi installation directory and check the version. Common locations include /opt/nifi, /usr/local/nifi, or the nifi.properties file (often in $NIFI_HOME/conf/). The version is typically documented in a VERSION file, the nifi.properties header, or accessible via the NiFi UI at the /nifi-api/about endpoint.
    Affected if The installed version is 0.7.0, 0.7.1, 1.1.0, or 1.1.1
  2. Confirm NiFi cluster mode is enabled
    Inspect the nifi.properties configuration file in the conf directory. Look for cluster-related properties beginning with 'nifi.cluster.' such as 'nifi.cluster.is.manager' or 'nifi.cluster.node.*'. Also check if 'nifi.cluster.is.enabled' is set to 'true'.
    Affected if Cluster mode is enabled and the node participates in a cluster configuration
  3. Verify cluster node communication configuration
    Review the nifi.properties file for cluster node settings including 'nifi.cluster.node.address', 'nifi.cluster.node.port', and any configured zookeeper or cluster manager connections. Also check nifi-state-management.xml for cluster state configuration.
    Affected if The node is configured to communicate with other cluster nodes, allowing replicated requests to flow between nodes
  4. Inspect proxy chain and user serialization settings
    Examine nifi.properties for any custom authentication or proxy chain settings. While there is no direct flag for the vulnerable serialization, check that 'nifi.security.user.login.identity.provider' and cluster authentication mechanisms are configured. Review any custom authentication chains in the configuration.
    Affected if Proxy chain authentication is in use for cluster communications without additional validation on deserialized user objects

You are affected if Apache NiFi is running in cluster mode AND the installed version is 0.7.0, 0.7.1, 1.1.0, or 1.1.1, allowing malicious usernames in cluster communications to be deserialized for impersonation.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade Apache NiFi to version 0.7.2, 1.1.2, or later. In the meantime, consider disabling cluster mode or implementing network-level access controls to limit exposure to untrusted networks.

Recommended fix High confidence

Apache NiFi 0.7.2 or 1.1.2 (or later stable releases in respective branches)

  1. 1. Back up your current NiFi installation, configuration, and flow.xml.gz file
  2. 2. Stop the NiFi cluster gracefully
  3. 3. Download Apache NiFi 0.7.2 (for 0.7.x line) or 1.1.2 (for 1.x line) or a later stable release from the official Apache NiFi downloads page (nifi.apache.org)
  4. 4. On each node in the cluster, replace the NiFi installation directory with the new version
  5. 5. Restore your backed-up configuration files to the new installation
  6. 6. Start the NiFi cluster nodes in the correct order (typically ZooKeeper first, then nodes)
  7. 7. Verify cluster health and that all nodes are properly connected
  8. 8. Test to confirm the proxy chain injection vulnerability is resolved
Caveat Review release notes for any configuration or behavior changes between your current version and the target version before upgrading

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

Fix this in Nifi Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,640
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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-2017-5636 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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