CVE-2009-0781 — tomcat
CVE-2009-0781 is a Cross-site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in org.apache.tomcat:tomcat. A fix is available for org.apache.tomcat:tomcat — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Cross-site scripting in Apache Tomcat
EPSS Exploitation Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.
Real-World Exposure
org.apache.tomcat:tomcat☕org.apache.tomcat:tomcat☕org.apache.tomcat:tomcatReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Maven packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in jsp/cal/cal2.jsp in the calendar application in the examples web application in Apache Tomcat 4.1.0 through 4.1.39, 5.5.0 through 5.5.27, and 6.0.0 through 6.0.18 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the time parameter, related to "invalid HTML."
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.apache.tomcat:tomcat | ≥ 4.1.0 | No fix |
| ☕Maven | org.apache.tomcat:tomcat | ≥ 5.5.0 | No fix |
| ☕Maven | org.apache.tomcat:tomcat | ≥ 6.0.0&&< 6.0.20 | 6.0.20org.apache.tomcat:tomcat:6.0.20 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.apache.tomcat:tomcat, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
No patched version of org.apache.tomcat:tomcat has shipped for CVE-2009-0781 yet. Where your build allows, override or pin the dependency away from the vulnerable range, and apply any maintainer-recommended mitigation.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How O3 protects you
O3 Security's impact-aware SCA analyses which vulnerable code paths your application actually calls, so a match like CVE-2009-0781 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2009-0781. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Fixing This On Your OS
If you run this on a Linux distribution, patch through your package manager against the distro's own security advisory below — it tracks the exact backported fix for your release, which can ship on a different timeline (and sometimes a different severity) than the upstream project.
Red Hat is aware of this issue and is tracking it via the following bug: https://bugzilla.redhat.com/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=CVE-2009-0781 The Red Hat Product Security has rated this issue as having low security impact, a future update may address this flaw. More information regarding issue severity can be found…
| Product | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 | tomcat5-0:5.5.23-0jpp.7.el5_3.2 | RHSA-2009:1164 |
| RHAPS Version 2 for RHEL 4 | tomcat5-0:5.5.23-0jpp_4rh.16 | RHSA-2009:1562 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2009-0781 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2009-0781 across Maven dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.