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TilesApplication · Apache

CVE-2023-49735

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-11-30
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
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
** UNSUPPORTED WHEN ASSIGNED ** The value set as the DefaultLocaleResolver.LOCALE_KEY attribute on the session was not validated while resolving XML definition files, leading to possible path traversal and eventually SSRF/XXE when passing user-controlled data to this key. Passing user-controlled data to this key may be relatively common, as it was also used like that to set the language in the 'tiles-test' application shipped with Tiles. This issue affects Apache Tiles from version 2 onwards. NOTE: This vulnerability only affects products that are no longer supported by the maintainer.

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 · moderate confidence

The DefaultLocaleResolver.LOCALE_KEY session attribute was not validated when resolving XML definition files in Apache Tiles, allowing attackers to inject path traversal sequences. This can lead to SSRF (Server-Side Request Forgery) or XXE (XML External Entity) attacks when user-controlled data is passed to this LOCALE_KEY parameter.

MitigationSince Apache Tiles is no longer supported, organizations should migrate to actively maintained alternatives. If continued use is unavoidable, implement strict input validation on the LOCALE_KEY parameter to prevent path traversal, SSRF, and XXE vectors.

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
TilesApplication
Affected:>= 2.0

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
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 Apache Tiles presence
    Search for tiles-related JAR files (tiles-*.jar) in the application's classpath or lib directory, or search codebase for 'org.apache.tiles' imports
    Affected if Apache Tiles libraries are found in the application
  2. Determine Apache Tiles version
    Inspect the tiles-core JAR file META-INF/MANIFEST.MF or check pom.xml/build.gradle for the tiles version dependency
    Affected if The installed version is 2.0 or higher
  3. Verify DefaultLocaleResolver usage
    Search configuration files (tiles-defs.xml, tiles-config.xml) or Java code for references to DefaultLocaleResolver or LOCALE_KEY attribute usage
    Affected if DefaultLocaleResolver is configured as the locale resolver
  4. Check for user-controllable LOCALE_KEY
    Review application code that handles request parameters and sets session attributes, looking for code that binds request parameters to the LOCALE_KEY session attribute
    Affected if User-supplied input can be set to the LOCALE_KEY session attribute
  5. Inspect XML definition file loading
    Examine tiles configuration and code that loads XML definition files to determine if file paths can include user-influenced path traversal sequences
    Affected if XML definition file paths accept user-controllable path segments

The environment is affected if Apache Tiles version 2.0 or higher is in use and user-controlled input can reach the DefaultLocaleResolver LOCALE_KEY session attribute to influence XML file path resolution.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Since Apache Tiles is no longer supported, organizations should migrate to actively maintained alternatives. If continued use is unavoidable, implement strict input validation on the LOCALE_KEY parameter to prevent path traversal, SSRF, and XXE vectors.

Fix this in Tiles Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
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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-2023-49735 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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