dbcve.org
ApisixApplication · Apache

CVE-2022-25757

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-03-28
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.13.0 or later.
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 APISIX before 2.13.0, when decoding JSON with duplicate keys, lua-cjson will choose the last occurred value as the result. By passing a JSON with a duplicate key, the attacker can bypass the body_schema validation in the request-validation plugin. For example, `{"string_payload":"bad","string_payload":"good"}` can be used to hide the "bad" input. Systems satisfy three conditions below are affected by this attack: 1. use body_schema validation in the request-validation plugin 2. upstream application uses a special JSON library that chooses the first occurred value, like jsoniter or gojay 3. upstream application does not validate the input anymore. The fix in APISIX is to re-encode the validated JSON input back into the request body at the side of APISIX. Improper Input Validation vulnerability in __COMPONENT__ of Apache APISIX allows an attacker to __IMPACT__. This issue affects Apache APISIX Apache APISIX version 2.12.1 and prior versions.

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 APISIX request-validation plugin can be bypassed by sending JSON with duplicate keys (e.g., {"string_payload":"bad","string_payload":"good"}). The lua-cjson library uses the last value during validation, but upstream applications using jsoniter or gojay will receive the first value, allowing attackers to smuggle malicious payloads past schema validation. This input validation bypass affects versions 2.12.1 and prior.

MitigationUpgrade to Apache APISIX 2.13.0 or later, which re-encodes validated JSON to ensure consistent key ordering; alternatively, implement duplicate-key rejection at the API gateway level.

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
ApisixApplication
Affected:< 2.13.0

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:3.1/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 APISIX version
    Query the APISIX Admin API at /apisix/admin/plugin_definitions or run 'apisix version' from the command line to retrieve the installed version number
    Affected if The version is 2.12.1 or prior (any version below 2.13.0)
  2. Confirm request-validation plugin is in use
    Query the APISIX Admin API GET /apisix/admin/routes to list configured routes, then inspect each route's 'plugins' section for 'request-validation'
    Affected if A route has request-validation plugin enabled with 'json-schema' or 'schema' validation configured
  3. Verify JSON body parsing is enabled
    In the route configuration, check if 'request_validation' plugin has 'schema' set to 'body' or contains a 'json_schema' definition that validates JSON object properties
    Affected if The plugin validates JSON request bodies (not just query parameters or headers)
  4. Test duplicate key bypass manually
    Send a POST request to the protected route with a JSON body containing duplicate keys, such as {"string_payload":"malicious","string_payload":"benign"}, and observe whether the validation accepts one value while upstream receives another
    Affected if Validation passes but the upstream application receives a different value than what was validated

You are affected if Apache APISIX version is below 2.13.0 AND the request-validation plugin is enabled with JSON body validation, allowing duplicate JSON keys to bypass schema checks.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 2.13.0 or later
Fixed in 2.13.0
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to Apache APISIX 2.13.0 or later, which re-encodes validated JSON to ensure consistent key ordering; alternatively, implement duplicate-key rejection at the API gateway level.

Recommended fix High confidence

2.13.0 or later

  1. Upgrade Apache APISIX to version 2.13.0 or later

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

Fix this in Apisix Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
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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-2022-25757 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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