CVE-2015-3253 — groovy
CRITICALCVE-2015-3253 is a critical-severity (CVSS 9.8) remote code execution vulnerability in org.codehaus.groovy:groovy. EPSS puts its 30-day exploitation probability at 41.0% (99th percentile). A fix is available for org.codehaus.groovy:groovy — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component in Apache Groovy
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.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2015-3253 plotted by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). The shaded corner — EPSS 50%+ and CVSS 7.0+ — is where this CVE doesn't sit, though severity or exploitability alone can still warrant action.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 379,145 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the 10–50% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
org.codehaus.groovy:groovy☕org.codehaus.groovy:groovy-allReal-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 MethodClosure class in runtime/MethodClosure.java in Apache Groovy 1.7.0 through 2.4.3 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service via a crafted serialized object.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.codehaus.groovy:groovy | ≥ 1.7.0&&< 2.4.4 | 2.4.4org.codehaus.groovy:groovy:2.4.4 |
| ☕Maven | org.codehaus.groovy:groovy-all | ≥ 1.7.0&&< 2.4.4 | 2.4.4org.codehaus.groovy:groovy-all:2.4.4 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.codehaus.groovy:groovy, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.codehaus.groovy:groovy to 2.4.4 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2015-3253 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Cap what an attacker can consume: apply request size, rate and timeout limits in front of the affected component, and run it with memory and CPU limits so exhaustion degrades one worker rather than the whole service.
How O3 protects you
O3 Security's impact-aware SCA analyses which vulnerable code paths your application actually calls, so a match like CVE-2015-3253 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2015-3253. 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.
Apply the following patch on the MethodClosure class (src/main/org/codehaus/groovy/runtime/MethodClosure.java): public class MethodClosure extends Closure { + private Object readResolve() { + throw new UnsupportedOperationException(); + } Alternatively, you should make sure to use a custom security policy file (using the standard Java security manager) or make sure that you do not rely on serialization to communicate remotely.Source: Red Hat security advisory for CVE-2015-3253 (CC BY 4.0)
| Product | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | groovy-0:1.8.9-8.el7_4 | RHSA-2017:2486 |
| Red Hat JBoss A-MQ 6.2 | see advisory | RHSA-2015:2557 |
| Red Hat JBoss Data Virtualization 6.2 | groovy-all | RHSA-2016:0066 |
| Red Hat JBoss Fuse 6.2 | see advisory | RHSA-2015:2556 |
| Red Hat JBoss Fuse Service Works 6.2 | see advisory | RHSA-2015:2558 |
| Red Hat JBoss Operations Network 3.3 | groovy-all | RHSA-2016:0118 |
| Red Hat JBoss SOA Platform 5.3 | grovy-all | RHSA-2016:1376 |
| Red Hat Software Collections for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | rh-maven33-groovy-0:1.8.9-7.19.el6 | RHSA-2017:2596 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2015-3253 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2015-3253 across Maven dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.