How severe is CVE-2019-17640?

CVE-2019-17640 has a CVSS score of 9.8/10, rated CRITICAL. Immediate patching is strongly recommended.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2019-17640?

CVE-2019-17640 affects the following packages: io.vertx:vertx-web (Maven). Ecosystems affected: Maven.

How do I fix CVE-2019-17640?

Update io.vertx:vertx-web to 3.9.4 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2019-17640 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect CVE-2019-17640 in my Maven dependencies?

Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for io.vertx:vertx-web, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.

How do I mitigate CVE-2019-17640 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

Resolve every user-supplied path to its canonical form and reject anything that escapes the intended directory, and run the component under an account that has no read or write access outside the directory it legitimately serves.

Is CVE-2019-17640 actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for CVE-2019-17640 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-2019-17640?

CVE-2019-17640 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 2.0%, placing it in the 81th 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-2019-17640?

CVE-2019-17640 is classified as CWE-23 (CWE-23), Path Traversal (CWE-22). These weakness types describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation. This is a high-impact weakness class that often enables remote code execution or data exposure.

When was CVE-2019-17640 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2019-17640 was published on October 15, 2020 and was last updated on October 24, 2026. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

☕

☕ Maven

Not in CISA KEV

CRITICAL severity

CVE-2019-17640 — vertx-web

CRITICALFix: vert-x3/vertx-web@b12f7c4

CVE-2019-17640 is a critical-severity (CVSS 9.8) CWE-23 vulnerability in io.vertx:vertx-web. A fix is available for io.vertx:vertx-web — see the affected versions and patch details below.

Path Traversal in Eclipse Vert

Also known asGHSA-vjw7-6gfq-6wf5

Published

Oct 15, 2020

Updated

Oct 24, 2026

Affected

1 pkg

Patched

1 / 1

Exploits

None indexed

Exploitation data as of Nov 7, 2026 · OSV.dev, NVD, FIRST.org (EPSS)

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

2.0%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Lower Risk0.00%

Lower risk than most CVEs81th percentile — riskier than 81% of all scored CVEsHighest risk

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

1 pkg affected

☕io.vertx:vertx-web

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

In Eclipse Vert.x 3.4.x up to 3.9.4, 4.0.0.milestone1, 4.0.0.milestone2, 4.0.0.milestone3, 4.0.0.milestone4, 4.0.0.milestone5, 4.0.0.Beta1, 4.0.0.Beta2, and 4.0.0.Beta3, StaticHandler doesn't correctly processes back slashes on Windows Operating systems, allowing, escape the webroot folder to the current working directory.

Affected Packages

1 total 1 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
☕Maven	`io.vertx:vertx-web`	≥ 3.0.0&&< 3.9.4	3.9.4`io.vertx:vertx-web:3.9.4`

Affected Products

1 product · 9 configurations

Application

vert.xeclipse

≥ 3.4.0 && ≤ 3.9.4

1 version

4.0.0

Detection & mitigation playbook

Open-source dependency

Detect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for io.vertx:vertx-web, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update io.vertx:vertx-web to 3.9.4 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2019-17640 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Resolve every user-supplied path to its canonical form and reject anything that escapes the intended directory, and run the component under an account that has no read or write access outside the directory it legitimately serves.

Frequently Asked Questions

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

Is CVE-2019-17640 in your dependencies?

Find it across Maven, including transitive dependencies.

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