CVE-2024-38524VulnerabilityPublished 10 Jun 2025

CVE-2024-38524: geoserver · Information Exposure

Affects geoserverSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 5.3 Medium : upgrade to 2.25.6 when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 06:26 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

5.3Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.4% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 38% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 2.25.6

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: Low
Integrity: None
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: Low: There is some loss of confidentiality. Access to some restricted information is obtained, but the attacker does not have control over what information is obtained, or the amount or kind of loss is limited. The information disclosure does not cause a direct, serious loss to the impacted component.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 10 Jun 2025
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 2026-10-26.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Upgrade org.geoserver/geoserver to 2.25.6.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Mavenorg.geoserver/geoserver`pkg:maven/org.geoserver/geoserver`Other threats	Affected <2.25.6	Fixed in 2.25.6

Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.

AI-suggested

European organizations using affected versions of GeoServer should prioritize upgrading to versions 2.25.6 or 2.26.2 where this vulnerability is fixed. Until upgrades can be applied, administrators should explicitly configure the system property that controls the visibility of storage locations to hide this information, overriding the default behavior. Additionally, network-level controls such as restricting access to GeoServer management interfaces and front pages to trusted IP ranges or VPNs can reduce exposure. Implementing web application firewalls (WAFs) with rules to detect and block suspicious requests targeting GeoWebCacheDispatcher endpoints can provide an additional layer of defense. Regularly auditing GeoServer configurations and logs for unusual access patterns is recommended. Organizations should also ensure that their overall geospatial data infrastructure follows the principle of least privilege and segmentation to limit the impact of any information disclosure.

Description

GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit geospatial data.org.geowebcache.GeoWebCacheDispatcher.handleFrontPage(HttpServletRequest, HttpServletResponse) has no check to hide potentially sensitive information from users except for a hidden system property to hide the storage locations that defaults to showing the locations. This vulnerability is fixed in 2.26.2 and 2.25.6.

Impact

For European organizations, the exposure of sensitive storage location information in GeoServer can increase the risk profile of their geospatial data infrastructure. GeoServer is widely used in government agencies, urban planning, environmental monitoring, and utilities management across Europe, where geospatial data is critical. Unauthorized disclosure of storage paths may enable attackers to map the internal architecture of the system, identify potential points of entry, or craft more effective attacks such as directory traversal or local file inclusion if other vulnerabilities exist. While the vulnerability itself does not directly compromise data integrity or availability, it lowers the barrier for attackers to conduct reconnaissance and escalate attacks. This is particularly concerning for organizations handling sensitive or critical infrastructure data, such as transportation networks, energy grids, or defense-related geospatial information. The medium severity rating suggests a moderate risk, but the impact could be amplified if combined with other vulnerabilities or misconfigurations.

CWE-200Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessLikelihood of exploit: HighCWE Top 25 (2025): #20OWASP Top 10 A01:2025: Broken Access Control (opens in a new tab)
The product exposes sensitive information to an actor that is not explicitly authorized to have access to that information.
MITRE discourages mapping vulnerabilities to this broad entry; the root cause is usually a more specific weakness.
Architecture and Design · Separation of Privilege
Compartmentalize the system to have "safe" areas where trust boundaries can be unambiguously drawn. Do not allow sensitive data to go outside of the trust boundary and always be careful when interfacing with a compartment outside of the safe area.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Error Handling (opens in a new tab)
Logging (opens in a new tab)
Authorization (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V8.3.4 (opens in a new tab)
V14.3.3 (opens in a new tab)
V7.3.3 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Subverting Environment Variable Values (opens in a new tab)
ICMP Echo Request Ping (opens in a new tab)
TCP SYN Scan (opens in a new tab)
Enumerate Mail Exchange (MX) Records (opens in a new tab)
DNS Zone Transfers (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 11 Jul 2025, 20:47 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-200

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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