CVE-2025-55754 is a critical-severity (CVSS 9.6) CWE-150 vulnerability in org.apache.tomcat:tomcat. EPSS puts its 30-day exploitation probability at 10.1% (95th percentile). A fix is available for org.apache.tomcat:tomcat — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Apache Tomcat: console manipulation via escape sequences in log messages
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
- CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2025-55754.
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.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2025-55754 plotted by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). The shaded corner — EPSS 50%+ and CVSS 7.0+ — is where this CVE doesn't sit, though severity or exploitability alone can still warrant action.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 378,156 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the 10–50% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
org.apache.tomcat:tomcat☕org.apache.tomcat:tomcat☕org.apache.tomcat:tomcat☕org.apache.tomcat:tomcat☕org.apache.tomcat.embed:tomcat-embed-core☕org.apache.tomcat.embed:tomcat-embed-core☕org.apache.tomcat.embed:tomcat-embed-core☕org.apache.tomcat.embed:tomcat-embed-core+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
Improper Neutralization of Escape, Meta, or Control Sequences vulnerability in Apache Tomcat.
Tomcat did not escape ANSI escape sequences in log messages. If Tomcat was running in a console on a Windows operating system, and the console supported ANSI escape sequences, it was possible for an attacker to use a specially crafted URL to inject ANSI escape sequences to manipulate the console and the clipboard and attempt to trick an administrator into running an attacker controlled command. While no attack vector was found, it may have been possible to mount this attack on other operating systems.
This issue affects Apache Tomcat: from 11.0.0-M1 through 11.0.10, from 10.1.0-M1 through 10.1.44, from 9.0.40 through 9.0.108.
The following versions were EOL at the time the CVE was created but are known to be affected: 8.5.60 though 8.5.100. Other, older, EOL versions may also be affected. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 11.0.11 or later, 10.1.45 or later or 9.0.109 or later, which fix the issue.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.apache.tomcat:tomcat | ≥ 11.0.0-M1&&< 11.0.11 | 11.0.11org.apache.tomcat:tomcat:11.0.11 |
| ☕Maven | org.apache.tomcat:tomcat | ≥ 10.1.0-M1&&< 10.1.45 | 10.1.45org.apache.tomcat:tomcat:10.1.45 |
| ☕Maven | org.apache.tomcat:tomcat | ≥ 9.0.40&&< 9.0.109 | 9.0.109org.apache.tomcat:tomcat:9.0.109 |
| ☕Maven | org.apache.tomcat:tomcat | ≥ 8.5.60 | No fix |
| ☕Maven | org.apache.tomcat.embed:tomcat-embed-core | ≥ 11.0.0-M1&&< 11.0.11 | 11.0.11org.apache.tomcat.embed:tomcat-embed-core:11.0.11 |
| ☕Maven | org.apache.tomcat.embed:tomcat-embed-core | ≥ 10.1.0-M1&&< 10.1.45 | 10.1.45org.apache.tomcat.embed:tomcat-embed-core:10.1.45 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.apache.tomcat:tomcat, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.apache.tomcat:tomcat to 11.0.11 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2025-55754 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 Security's impact-aware SCA analyses which vulnerable code paths your application actually calls, so a match like CVE-2025-55754 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2025-55754. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
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 Enterprise Linux 10 | tomcat9-1:9.0.110-2.el10_2 | RHSA-2026:18536 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 | tomcat-1:10.1.49-1.el10 | RHSA-2026:18537 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | tomcat-1:9.0.110-2.el9_8 | RHSA-2026:18916 |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 6.2.0 | tomcat-juli | RHSA-2026:2741 |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 6.2 on RHEL 10 | jws6-tomcat-0:10.1.49-7.redhat_00006.1.el10jws | RHSA-2026:2740 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | tomcat11-main-11.0.21-0.1.hum1 | RHSA-2026:6569 |
| Red Hat Hardened Images | tomcat10-main-10.1.54-1.hum1 | RHSA-2026:8334 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2025-55754 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2025-55754 across Maven dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.