CVE-2018-3831
HIGHCVE-2018-3831 is a high-severity (CVSS 8.8) Information Exposure vulnerability in org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch. O3 Security confirms whether CVE-2018-3831 is actually reachable in your code before you act, and blocks exploitation at runtime until you patch.
Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor in Elasticsearch
Real-World Exposure
org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch☕org.elasticsearch:elasticsearchReal-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
Elasticsearch Alerting and Monitoring in versions before 6.4.1 or 5.6.12 have an information disclosure issue when secrets are configured via the API. The Elasticsearch _cluster/settings API, when queried, could leak sensitive configuration information such as passwords, tokens, or usernames. This could allow an authenticated Elasticsearch user to improperly view these details.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch | ≥ 5.6.0&&< 5.6.12 | 5.6.12 |
| ☕Maven | org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch | ≥ 6.0.0&&< 6.4.1 | 6.4.1 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch to 5.6.12 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2018-3831 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.
How O3 protects you
O3 pinpoints whether CVE-2018-3831 is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to CVE-2018-3831. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2018-3831 in your dependencies?
O3 detects CVE-2018-3831 across Maven dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.