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XML External Entity (XXE)Weakness · CWE-611

CVE-2025-6438

MEDIUM · 5.9 CVSS v4.0 Published 2025-07-11
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
65/100
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
A CWE-611: Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference vulnerability exists that could cause manipulation of SOAP API calls and XML external entities injection resulting in unauthorized file access when the server is accessed via the network using an application account.

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

This is an XML External Entity (XXE) injection vulnerability (CWE-611) in a SOAP API. Attackers can manipulate SOAP API calls by injecting malicious XML external entity references, allowing unauthorized file access on the server when accessing the application over the network with an application account.

MitigationDisable external entity processing in the XML parser configuration used by the SOAP API, and implement input validation for XML payloads to prevent XXE injection.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

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
High
Authentication
X
User interaction
None
Scope
X

CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:H/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:L/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X

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 SOAP API exposure
    Review your web server configuration, application routing, and API gateway settings to determine if SOAP API endpoints are publicly or internally accessible. Check for WSDL files and SOAP-based web service URLs.
    Affected if SOAP API endpoints are accessible over the network without proper restrictions
  2. Locate XML parser configuration
    Search configuration files for XML parser settings. Common locations include application config files (web.xml, app.config, application.properties), SOAP handler configurations, and XML processing libraries. Look for keywords: XMLReader, DocumentBuilder, SAXParser, XMLParser, and entity processing settings.
    Affected if XML parser is configured with external entity processing enabled (dtd or external-general-entities/external-parameter-entities not set to false)
  3. Verify external entity restrictions
    Inspect the XML parser implementation code or configuration to confirm whether external entity processing is disabled. Check for parser.setFeature("http://xml.org/sax/features/external-general-entities", false) or equivalent settings in your SOAP handler.
    Affected if External entity processing is not explicitly disabled in the XML parser configuration used by the SOAP API
  4. Review SOAP handler configuration
    Examine your SOAP message handlers, interceptors, or filters that process incoming XML requests. Identify the XML parsing library and its security configuration settings.
    Affected if SOAP handlers use a default XML parser configuration without disabling external entity resolution
  5. Confirm network access requirement
    Verify that the SOAP API can be accessed over the network with any application account. This includes internal network access, VPN access, or authenticated API access.
    Affected if The SOAP API is reachable over the network and accepts requests from accounts that can submit arbitrary XML content

Your environment is affected if SOAP API endpoints are network-accessible and the XML parser configuration does not explicitly disable external entity processing.

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

Disable external entity processing in the XML parser configuration used by the SOAP API, and implement input validation for XML payloads to prevent XXE injection.

Have this fixed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2025-6438 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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