How severe is CVE-2012-5885?

No CVSS score has been assigned to CVE-2012-5885 yet. Review the advisory details and affected package list to assess your exposure.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2012-5885?

CVE-2012-5885 affects the following packages: org.apache.tomcat:tomcat (Maven), org.apache.tomcat:tomcat (Maven), org.apache.tomcat:tomcat (Maven). Ecosystems affected: Maven.

How do I fix CVE-2012-5885?

Update org.apache.tomcat:tomcat to 5.5.36 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2012-5885 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect CVE-2012-5885 in my Maven dependencies?

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.

How do I mitigate CVE-2012-5885 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

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.

Is CVE-2012-5885 actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for CVE-2012-5885 yet. This does not mean the vulnerability cannot be exploited — absence of public exploits does not imply safety. Apply the recommended fix and use O3 Security to monitor your exposure.

What is the EPSS score for CVE-2012-5885?

CVE-2012-5885 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 9.0%, placing it in the 95th percentile of all CVEs. EPSS is maintained by FIRST.org and estimates the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. This score indicates relatively lower exploitation probability, though the CVSS severity should still guide your patching priority.

What type of vulnerability is CVE-2012-5885?

CVE-2012-5885 is classified as CWE-264 (CWE-264). This weakness type describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation.

When was CVE-2012-5885 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2012-5885 was published on May 17, 2022 and was last updated on November 8, 2023. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

CVE-2012-5885: tomcat — Fixed in 5.5.36

Exploitation Status

No confirmed exploitation observed yet

CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.

Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2012-5885.

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

9.0%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Lower Risk0.00%

Lower risk than most CVEs95th percentile — riskier than 95% of all scored CVEsHighest risk

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.

Real-World Exposure

3 pkgs affected

☕org.apache.tomcat:tomcat☕org.apache.tomcat:tomcat☕org.apache.tomcat:tomcat

Real-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

The replay-countermeasure functionality in the HTTP Digest Access Authentication implementation in Apache Tomcat 5.5.x before 5.5.36, 6.x before 6.0.36, and 7.x before 7.0.30 tracks cnonce (aka client nonce) values instead of nonce (aka server nonce) and nc (aka nonce-count) values, which makes it easier for remote attackers to bypass intended access restrictions by sniffing the network for valid requests, a different vulnerability than CVE-2011-1184.

Affected Packages

3 total 3 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
☕Maven	`org.apache.tomcat:tomcat`	≥ 5.5.0&&< 5.5.36	5.5.36`org.apache.tomcat:tomcat:5.5.36`
☕Maven	`org.apache.tomcat:tomcat`	≥ 6.0.0&&< 6.0.36	6.0.36`org.apache.tomcat:tomcat:6.0.36`
☕Maven	`org.apache.tomcat:tomcat`	≥ 7.0.0&&< 7.0.30	7.0.30`org.apache.tomcat:tomcat:7.0.30`

Affected Products

1 product · 107 configurations

Application

tomcatapache

94 versions

5.5.05.5.15.5.25.5.35.5.45.5.55.5.65.5.75.5.85.5.95.5.105.5.11

Detection & mitigation playbook

Open-source dependency

Detect
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
Update org.apache.tomcat:tomcat to 5.5.36 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2012-5885 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
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.

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 HatModerate

Product	Fixed in	Advisory
JBEWP 5 for RHEL 5	`jbossweb-0:2.1.13-3_patch_02.ep5.el5`	RHSA-2013:0631
JBoss Data Grid 6.1	see advisory	RHSA-2013:0665
JBoss Enterprise BRMS Platform 5.3	see advisory	RHSA-2013:1006
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5	`tomcat5-0:5.5.23-0jpp.38.el5_9`	RHSA-2013:0640
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6	`tomcat6-0:6.0.24-52.el6_4`	RHSA-2013:0623
Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 5.2	see advisory	RHSA-2013:0632
Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 5 for RHEL 5	`jbossweb-0:2.1.13-3_patch_02.ep5.el5`	RHSA-2013:0629
Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 6.0	see advisory	RHSA-2013:0648

Ubuntu

USN-1637-1Ubuntu

Frequently Asked Questions

The replay-countermeasure functionality in the HTTP Digest Access Authentication implementation in Apache Tomcat 5.5.x before 5.5.36, 6.x before 6.0.36, and 7.x before 7.0.30 tracks cnonce (aka client nonce) values instead of nonce (aka server nonce) and nc (aka nonce-count) values, which makes it easier for remote attackers to bypass intended access restrictions by sniffing the network for valid requests, a different vulnerability than CVE-2011-1184.

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

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CVE-2012-5885 — tomcat