OozieApplication · Apache
CVE-2018-11799
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 · uneditedVulnerability allows a user of Apache Oozie 3.1.3-incubating to 5.0.0 to impersonate other users. The malicious user can construct an XML that results workflows running in other user's name.
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 confidenceApache Oozie versions 3.1.3-incubating through 5.0.0 contains an XML parsing vulnerability that allows authenticated users to impersonate other users by crafting malicious XML configurations. The flaw permits unauthorized workflow execution under different user identities, representing a privilege escalation issue.
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
OozieApplication
>= 3.1.3, < 5.1.0= 3.1.3CVSS 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
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Determine installed Apache Oozie versionRun 'oozie version' or check the Oozie WAR file version in /usr/lib/oozie/oozie.war, or query the Oozie REST API at /oozie/v2/admin/statusAffected if The installed version is 3.1.3, or any version from 3.1.3-incubating through 5.0.0 (versions < 5.1.0)
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Verify Oozie is accepting workflow job submissionsCheck if the Oozie server is running and the /oozie/v2/jobs endpoint is accessible via REST API using curl or similar toolAffected if Oozie is running and accepting job submissions via the web services API
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Confirm XML workflow definition parsing is enabledLook for workflow.xml files being submitted to Oozie. Check the Oozie configuration file (oozie-site.xml) for 'oozie.service.WorkflowJobServlet' and 'oozie.service.HadoopAccessorService' settings, or examine submitted jobs via 'oozie jobs -jobtype wf'Affected if XML-based workflow definitions are being parsed and executed by Oozie
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Identify if multi-user impersonation is configuredExamine Oozie configuration files (oozie-site.xml) for 'oozie.service.HadoopAccessorService.impersonation.enabled' and review proxyuser settings for HadoopAffected if Hadoop impersonation/proxyuser is enabled, allowing Oozie to submit jobs on behalf of other users
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Review Oozie audit logs for unauthorized user impersonationCheck Oozie audit logs (typically in /var/log/oozie/) for entries where the 'user' submitting the job differs from the 'effective user' or 'group' fields, indicating potential exploitation attemptsAffected if Audit logs show job submissions where the authenticated user differs from the job owner identity
A system is affected if Oozie version is less than 5.1.0 AND the system accepts XML-based workflow submissions with Hadoop impersonation enabled, allowing an authenticated user to execute workflows under different user identities.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 data5.1.0
Upgrade Apache Oozie to version 5.1.0 or later, which contains the fix for this vulnerability. If immediate patching is not possible, implement strict XML input validation and review user access controls.
Fix this in Oozie
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,096.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-11799 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2018-11799 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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