CVE-2018-1259 — spring-data-commons
HIGHCVE-2018-1259 is a high-severity (CVSS 7.5) XML External Entity (XXE) vulnerability in org.springframework.data:spring-data-commons. A fix is available for org.springframework.data:spring-data-commons — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Spring Data Commons, used in combination with XMLBeam, contains a property binder vulnerability caused by improper restriction of XML external entity references
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
Where this sits among everything scored
Real-World Exposure
org.springframework.data:spring-data-commons☕org.springframework.data:spring-data-commonsReal-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
Spring Data Commons, versions 1.13 prior to 1.13.12 and 2.0 prior to 2.0.7, used in combination with XMLBeam 1.4.14 or earlier versions, contains a property binder vulnerability caused by improper restriction of XML external entity references as underlying library XMLBeam does not restrict external reference expansion. An unauthenticated remote malicious user can supply specially crafted request parameters against Spring Data's projection-based request payload binding to access arbitrary files on the system.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.springframework.data:spring-data-commons | ≥ 1.13.0&&< 1.13.12 | 1.13.12org.springframework.data:spring-data-commons:1.13.12 |
| ☕Maven | org.springframework.data:spring-data-commons | ≥ 2.0.0&&< 2.0.7 | 2.0.7org.springframework.data:spring-data-commons:2.0.7 |
Affected Products
spring data commonsbroadcomspring data restpivotal_softwarespring data restvmwarexmlbeamxmlbeamDetection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.springframework.data:spring-data-commons, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.springframework.data:spring-data-commons to 1.13.12 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2018-1259 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.
| Product | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Fuse 7.2 | spring-data-commons | RHSA-2018:3768 |
| Text-Only RHOAR | see advisory | RHSA-2018:1809 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2018-1259 in your dependencies?
Find it across Maven, including transitive dependencies.