VulnerabilityPublished 12 Jun 2026Updated 26 Oct 2026

CVE-2026-49875: Org.apache.cxf:cxf core: Apache CXF has Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference

Affects org.apache.cxf:cxf-coreSource GCVE Database

Authoritative record:CVE-2026-49875· Medium 6.5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 6.5 Medium : upgrade to 4.2.2 when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 17:43 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

6.5Medium

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

Patch: Available – fixed in 4.2.2, 4.1.7, 3.6.12

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

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: Low
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
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: Low: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide basic user capabilities that could normally affect only settings and files owned by a user. Alternatively, an attacker with Low privileges may have the ability to cause an impact only to non-sensitive resources.
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: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
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 12 Jun 2026
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 26 Oct 2026.

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 or the CVSS exploit maturity 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.apache.cxf:cxf-core to 4.2.2; org.apache.cxf:cxf-core to 4.1.7; org.apache.cxf:cxf-core to 3.6.12.

Patches and advisories

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Mavenorg.apache.cxf:cxf-core	Affected >=4.2.0 <4.2.2	Fixed in 4.2.2
Mavenorg.apache.cxf:cxf-core	Affected >=4.0.0 <4.1.7	Fixed in 4.1.7
Mavenorg.apache.cxf:cxf-core	Affected <3.6.12	Fixed in 3.6.12

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

AI-suggested

A patch is available and should be applied. Users should upgrade Apache CXF to versions 4.2.2, 4.1.7, or 3.6.12, which include the necessary JAXP hardening configurations to prevent out-of-band external entity resolution. Vendor advisories from Red Hat provide official updates and instructions. No additional mitigation steps are required beyond applying the official fixes.

Description

Apache CXF versions prior to 4.2.2, 4.1.7, and 3.6.12 improperly construct SAXParserFactory instances without necessary JAXP hardening configurations. This flaw enables out-of-band (OOB) external entity resolution, leading to potential information disclosure. The vulnerability is tracked as CVE-2026-49875 and has a critical severity rating with a CVSS score of 9.8. Users are advised to upgrade to fixed versions 4.2.2, 4.1.7, or 3.6.12 to remediate the issue.

Impact

Successful exploitation of this vulnerability can lead to information disclosure via out-of-band external entity resolution. The critical CVSS score of 9.8 reflects high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. There are no known exploits in the wild at this time. The vulnerability allows attackers to leverage improperly hardened XML parsing to extract sensitive data or cause other impacts related to external entity processing.

CWE-611Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference (opens in a new tab)
Base weaknessOWASP Top 10 A02:2025: Security Misconfiguration (opens in a new tab)
The product processes an XML document that can contain XML entities with URIs that resolve to documents outside of the intended sphere of control, causing the product to embed incorrect documents into its output.
Implementation · System Configuration
Many XML parsers and validators can be configured to disable external entity expansion.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Deserialization (opens in a new tab)
XML Security (opens in a new tab)
XML External Entity Prevention (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V5.5.2 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Data Serialization External Entities Blowup (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

Patches and advisories

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 26 Oct 2026, 17:43 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-611

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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