CVE-2024-36401
CRITICALRemote Code Execution (RCE) vulnerability in evaluating property name expressions in Geoserver
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.
Blast Radius
org.geoserver.web:gs-web-app☕org.geoserver:gs-wfs☕org.geoserver:gs-wms☕org.geoserver.web:gs-web-app☕org.geoserver:gs-wfs☕org.geoserver:gs-wms☕org.geoserver.web:gs-web-app☕org.geoserver:gs-wfs+4 moreReal-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
GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit geospatial data. Prior to versions 2.22.6, 2.23.6, 2.24.4, and 2.25.2, multiple OGC request parameters allow Remote Code Execution (RCE) by unauthenticated users through specially crafted input against a default GeoServer installation due to unsafely evaluating property names as XPath expressions.
The GeoTools library API that GeoServer calls evaluates property/attribute names for feature types in a way that unsafely passes them to the commons-jxpath library which can execute arbitrary code when evaluating XPath expressions. This XPath evaluation is intended to be used only by complex feature types (i.e., Application Schema data stores) but is incorrectly being applied to simple feature types as well which makes this vulnerability apply to ALL GeoServer instances. No public PoC is provided but this vulnerability has been confirmed to be exploitable through WFS GetFeature, WFS GetPropertyValue, WMS GetMap, WMS GetFeatureInfo, WMS GetLegendGraphic and WPS Execute requests. This vulnerability can lead to executing arbitrary code.
Versions 2.22.6, 2.23.6, 2.24.4, and 2.25.2 contain a patch for the issue. A workaround exists by removing the gt-complex-x.y.jar file from the GeoServer where x.y is the GeoTools version (e.g., gt-complex-31.1.jar if running GeoServer 2.25.1). This will remove the vulnerable code from GeoServer but may break some GeoServer functionality or prevent GeoServer from deploying if the gt-complex module is needed.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.geoserver.web:gs-web-app | ≥ 2.24.0&&< 2.24.4 | 2.24.4 |
| ☕Maven | org.geoserver:gs-wfs | ≥ 2.24.0&&< 2.24.4 | 2.24.4 |
| ☕Maven | org.geoserver:gs-wms | ≥ 2.24.0&&< 2.24.4 | 2.24.4 |
| ☕Maven | org.geoserver.web:gs-web-app | ≥ 2.25.0&&< 2.25.2 | 2.25.2 |
| ☕Maven | org.geoserver:gs-wfs | ≥ 2.25.0&&< 2.25.2 | 2.25.2 |
| ☕Maven | org.geoserver:gs-wms | ≥ 2.25.0&&< 2.25.2 | 2.25.2 |
Research use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit g…
GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit g…
GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit g…
GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit g…
GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit g…
GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit g…
GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit g…
GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit g…
GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit g…
GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit g…
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.geoserver.web:gs-web-app. 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.geoserver.web:gs-web-app to 2.24.4 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2024-36401 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-2024-36401 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-2024-36401. 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-2024-36401 in your dependencies?
O3 detects CVE-2024-36401 across Maven dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.