dbcve.org
TapestryApplication · Apache

CVE-2021-30638

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-04-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.6.4 / 5.7.2 or later.
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
Information Exposure vulnerability in context asset handling of Apache Tapestry allows an attacker to download files inside WEB-INF if using a specially-constructed URL. This was caused by an incomplete fix for CVE-2020-13953. This issue affects Apache Tapestry Apache Tapestry 5.4.0 version to Apache Tapestry 5.6.3; Apache Tapestry 5.7.0 version and Apache Tapestry 5.7.1.

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

Information Exposure vulnerability in Apache Tapestry's context asset handling allows attackers to download sensitive files from the WEB-INF directory using specially-crafted URLs. This is due to an incomplete fix for CVE-2020-13953, affecting versions 5.4.0 through 5.6.3 and versions 5.7.0-5.7.1.

MitigationUpgrade to Apache Tapestry 5.6.4 or 5.7.2 and later which contain the complete fix. If immediate upgrade is not feasible, implement URL filtering at the web server or WAF level to block requests targeting WEB-INF resources.

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
TapestryApplication
Affected:>= 5.4.0, < 5.6.4>= 5.7.0, < 5.7.2

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
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/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 Tapestry installation
    Search for tapestry-core.jar or tapestry*.jar files in the application's lib, WEB-INF/lib, or classpath directories. If using Maven, check pom.xml for tapestry dependencies.
    Affected if Apache Tapestry libraries are present in the application
  2. Determine Tapestry version
    Check the version of tapestry-core.jar or examine the pom.xml for the tapestry.version property. Run: jar -tf tapestry-core.jar | grep 'META-INF/MANIFEST.MF' then inspect the manifest file for the version, or grep the pom.xml for '<version>' under tapestry dependencies.
    Affected if Version is 5.4.0 through 5.6.3, or 5.7.0 through 5.7.1
  3. Verify context asset handling is in use
    Confirm the application serves static resources through Tapestry's asset system. This is the default behavior - check if the application has a context folder with static assets accessible via the application URL.
    Affected if The application uses Tapestry's default asset serving mechanism (which is enabled by default)
  4. Confirm WEB-INF directory exists
    Inspect the WEB-INF directory in the deployed web application for sensitive configuration files such as web.xml, application properties, or other configuration files that should not be publicly accessible.
    Affected if The WEB-INF directory contains sensitive configuration files that could be exposed
  5. Test for vulnerable URL pattern (optional validation)
    Attempt a request to an asset path that attempts to traverse to WEB-INF, such as: /assets/somefile/../web.xml or similar path traversal patterns targeting WEB-INF resources. This check should only be performed in authorized test environments.
    Affected if The server returns content from files under WEB-INF directory

The environment is affected if Apache Tapestry version is 5.4.0-5.6.3 or 5.7.0-5.7.1 and the application uses Tapestry's context asset handling, which is enabled by default.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 5.6.4 / 5.7.2 or later
Fixed in 5.6.45.7.2
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to Apache Tapestry 5.6.4 or 5.7.2 and later which contain the complete fix. If immediate upgrade is not feasible, implement URL filtering at the web server or WAF level to block requests targeting WEB-INF resources.

Fix this in Tapestry Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing12.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
28.0 hours of engineering $4,760
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $7,616.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-30638 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2021-30638 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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