CVE-2020-5407
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 · uneditedSpring Security versions 5.2.x prior to 5.2.4 and 5.3.x prior to 5.3.2 contain a signature wrapping vulnerability during SAML response validation. When using the spring-security-saml2-service-provider component, a malicious user can carefully modify an otherwise valid SAML response and append an arbitrary assertion that Spring Security will accept as valid.
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 confidenceA signature wrapping vulnerability in Spring Security's SAML2 service provider component allows attackers to append arbitrary SAML assertions to a validly signed response. By modifying the XML structure of a legitimate SAML response, a malicious user can inject additional assertions that Spring Security incorrectly trusts as valid, bypassing authentication controls.
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>= 5.2.0, < 5.2.4>= 5.3.0, < 5.3.2CVSS 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
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify Spring Security versionLocate the Spring Security library in your project dependencies (pom.xml, build.gradle) or the deployed JAR/WAR file's manifest and note the exact version number.Affected if The version falls within 5.2.0 to 5.2.3 inclusive, or 5.3.0 to 5.3.1 inclusive.
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Verify SAML2 login is configuredSearch your project configuration files (Java config classes, XML configuration, or application.properties/yaml) for SAML2-related beans, annotations such as @EnableWebSecurity with SAML2 login elements, or SAML2 provider configuration.Affected if SAML2 service provider functionality is enabled in the Spring Security configuration.
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Confirm SAML2 dependency is presentCheck your build configuration or deployed application for the presence of spring-security-saml2-service-provider library dependency.Affected if The spring-security-saml2-service-provider module is included in your application classpath.
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Review SAML response processingExamine the Spring Security SAML2 configuration to determine if unsigned or partially signed SAML responses are accepted, or if custom XML parsing is in use that may not properly validate the signature wrapper structure.Affected if The application accepts SAML responses where multiple assertions exist and only the first is validated.
Your environment is affected if you use a Spring Security version between 5.2.0-5.2.3 or 5.3.0-5.3.1 with SAML2 login enabled, allowing attackers to inject additional untrusted SAML assertions into a validly signed response.
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 data5.2.45.3.2
Upgrade Spring Security to version 5.2.4 or later for the 5.2.x line, or 5.3.2 or later for the 5.3.x line. These versions contain the fix for proper SAML response signature validation that prevents signature wrapping attacks.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-5407 — 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-2020-5407 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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