CVE-2020-15777
HIGHAn issue was discovered in the Maven Extension plugin before 1.6 for Gradle Enterprise. The extension uses a socket connection to send serialized Java objects. Deserialization is not…
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.
Description
An issue was discovered in the Maven Extension plugin before 1.6 for Gradle Enterprise. The extension uses a socket connection to send serialized Java objects. Deserialization is not restricted to an allow-list, thus allowing an attacker to achieve code execution via a malicious deserialization gadget chain. The socket is not bound exclusively to localhost. The port this socket is assigned to is randomly selected and is not intentionally exposed to the public (either by design or documentation). This could potentially be used to achieve remote code execution and local privilege escalation.
Affected Products
mavengradleDetection & mitigation playbook
Vendor / applianceDetect
Inventory every gradle maven deployment and check each version against the affected-products list above. Because the exploit targets the running system rather than your application code, also watch for remote code execution at the network and runtime layer — O3 flags the exploit behaviour from runtime telemetry and egress traffic even before a vulnerable build is confirmed.
Fix
Apply the gradle maven security patch or hotfix for CVE-2020-15777 on the affected version, following the vendor advisory for your exact build.
Workarounds
Cut exposure now: restrict the management/admin interface to trusted networks, segment the device, and apply the vendor's recommended configuration mitigations and any WAF/IPS signature. O3's runtime protection blocks the exploit chain at execution, holding the line on unpatched or end-of-life systems until you can patch.
How O3 protects you
O3 detects and blocks CVE-2020-15777 exploitation at runtime: eBPF exploit-chain detection, plus L7 egress monitoring that catches the post-exploitation callback and severs the attacker's outbound channel.
Tailored to CVE-2020-15777. 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-2020-15777 being exploited in your environment?
O3's eBPF runtime sensors and L7 egress monitoring detect and block the CVE-2020-15777 exploit chain at execution — protecting unpatched and end-of-life systems until the vendor patch is applied.