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AmbariApplication · Apache

CVE-2023-50380

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-02-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.7.8 or later.
See remediation →
71/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable 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
XML External Entity injection in apache ambari versions <= 2.7.7, Users are recommended to upgrade to version 2.7.8, which fixes this issue. More Details: Oozie Workflow Scheduler had a vulnerability that allowed for root-level file reading and privilege escalation from low-privilege users. The vulnerability was caused through lack of proper user input validation. This vulnerability is known as an XML External Entity (XXE) injection attack. Attackers can exploit XXE vulnerabilities to read arbitrary files on the server, including sensitive system files. In theory, it might be possible to use this to escalate privileges.

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

XML External Entity (XXE) injection vulnerability in Apache Ambari's Oozie Workflow Scheduler allows low-privilege users to read arbitrary files on the server and potentially escalate privileges to root. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation when processing XML data, enabling attackers to inject malicious external entity references.

MitigationUpgrade Apache Ambari to version 2.7.8 or later, which contains the fix for this XXE vulnerability.

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
AmbariApplication
Affected:>= 2.7.0, < 2.7.8

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
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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. Confirm Apache Ambari is installed
    Check for Ambari installation by looking for the ambari-server process or checking common installation directories like /usr/lib/ambari-server or /opt/ambari.
    Affected if Ambari is installed on the system
  2. Determine installed Ambari version
    Run 'ambari-server --version' or check the RPM/DEB package version with 'rpm -q ambari-server' or 'dpkg -l ambari-server'.
    Affected if Version is >= 2.7.0 and < 2.7.8
  3. Verify Oozie service is enabled
    Check if Oozie is configured and running in Ambari through the Ambari web UI or by checking the Oozie service status via 'ambari-agent status' or inspecting cluster configuration files.
    Affected if Oozie Workflow Scheduler is enabled and accessible in the Ambari deployment
  4. Check user access to Oozie interface
    Review Ambari user permissions and authentication settings to determine if low-privilege users can access the Oozie workflow submission and scheduling functionality.
    Affected if Low-privilege or unauthenticated users can access the Oozie XML submission endpoints

The environment is affected if Apache Ambari version is between 2.7.0 and 2.7.7 inclusive, Oozie service is enabled, and users can submit XML workflows to Oozie.

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 2.7.8 or later
Fixed in 2.7.8
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Apache Ambari to version 2.7.8 or later, which contains the fix for this XXE vulnerability.

Recommended fix High confidence

Ambari 2.7.8

  1. 1. Back up the existing Ambari configuration, database, and all relevant configuration files before proceeding with the upgrade.
  2. 2. Stop all Ambari services and related components (including Oozie) to ensure a clean upgrade process.
  3. 3. Download Apache Ambari version 2.7.8 from the official Apache repository (https://ambari.apache.org/downloads.html) or your distribution's package manager.
  4. 4. Execute the Ambari upgrade process following the official upgrade documentation: run 'ambari-server upgrade' or use your distribution's package upgrade command.
  5. 5. After upgrade completion, verify that the XXE vulnerability is resolved by confirming Ambari version shows 2.7.8.
  6. 6. Restart all Ambari services and validate that Oozie Workflow Scheduler functionality is working correctly.
  7. 7. Test that the XML parser in Oozie properly handles external entities (should reject them) to confirm the fix is active.
Caveat Review Apache Ambari 2.7.8 release notes for any compatibility changes with your Hadoop ecosystem components before upgrading.

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

Fix this in Ambari Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
21.0 hours of engineering $3,680
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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-2023-50380 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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