How severe is CVE-2026-54078?

No CVSS score has been assigned to CVE-2026-54078 yet. Review the advisory details and affected package list to assess your exposure.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2026-54078?

CVE-2026-54078 affects the following packages: org.verapdf:validation-model (Maven), org.verapdf:validation-model (Maven), org.verapdf:validation-model-jakarta (Maven), org.verapdf:validation-model-jakarta (Maven). Ecosystems affected: Maven.

How do I fix CVE-2026-54078?

Update org.verapdf:validation-model to 1.30.2 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2026-54078 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect CVE-2026-54078 in my Maven dependencies?

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

How do I mitigate CVE-2026-54078 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

Restrict outbound requests from the affected component to an allowlist of hosts, block access to link-local and internal address ranges at the network layer, and require authentication on internal services so a forged request cannot reach them unauthenticated.

Is CVE-2026-54078 actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for CVE-2026-54078 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-2026-54078?

CVE-2026-54078 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 0.6%, placing it in the 46th 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-2026-54078?

CVE-2026-54078 is classified as XML External Entity (XXE) (CWE-611). This weakness type describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation.

When was CVE-2026-54078 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2026-54078 was published on July 29, 2026 and was last updated on October 28, 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

CVE-2026-54078 — validation-model

Fix: veraPDF/veraPDF-validation@94caa46

CVE-2026-54078 is a XML External Entity (XXE) vulnerability in org.verapdf:validation-model. A fix is available for org.verapdf:validation-model — see the affected versions and patch details below.

veraPDF Validation XXE via Rich Text

Also known asGHSA-3jh7-wm29-q568

Published

Jul 29, 2026

Updated

Oct 28, 2026

Affected

4 pkgs

Patched

4 / 4

Exploits

None indexed

Exploitation data as of Oct 29, 2026 · OSV.dev, NVD, FIRST.org (EPSS)

Exploitation Status

No confirmed exploitation observed yet

CISA assesses this as automatable — exploitation doesn’t require manual, per-target effort, which raises the odds of mass scanning and opportunistic attacks.
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-2026-54078.

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

0.6%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Lower Risk0.00%

Lower risk than most CVEs46th percentile — riskier than 46% of all scored CVEsHighest risk

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.

Real-World Exposure

4 pkgs affected

☕org.verapdf:validation-model☕org.verapdf:validation-model☕org.verapdf:validation-model-jakarta☕org.verapdf:validation-model-jakarta

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

Summary

Description An XML External Entity Injection (CWE-611) vulnerability in veraPDF allows a remote attacker to read arbitrary files on the server file system and perform Server-Side Request Forgery by submitting a crafted PDF containing a malicious rich-text (/RC or /RV) entry. This affects all current versions of veraPDF-validation.

Details

The vulnerability resides in veraPDF-validation validation-model/src/main/java/org/verapdf/gf/model/tools/DictionaryKeysHelper.java within the getRichTextStringOrStreamEntryStringRepresentation() method. This helper extracts the XHTML rich-text body from a PDF dictionary string or stream and parses it with a DOM parser to return the concatenated text content.

The vulnerability stems from two combined issues:

The DocumentBuilderFactory is instantiated with default settings , no disallow-doctype-decl, no disabling of external general/parameter entities, no FEATURE_SECURE_PROCESSING, and no secure EntityResolver. The default JAXP/Xerces parser will therefore resolve <!DOCTYPE … SYSTEM "…"> and <!ENTITY … SYSTEM "…"> declarations.
After parsing, getAllNodeText() recursively concatenates every text node in the document and returns it as the model property value. This means the expanded contents of any external entity are reflected directly back into the validation report.

Impact

This impacts all current releases of the veraPDF validation-model module.

Successful exploitation requires only that the target validate an attacker-supplied PDF. A single markup annotation with a crafted /RC string is sufficient.

Proposed Patch

Harden the DocumentBuilderFactory in validation-model/src/main/java/org/verapdf/gf/model/tools/DictionaryKeysHelper.java per the OWASP XXE Prevention Cheat Sheet to disallow DOCTYPE outright.

Affected Packages

4 total 4 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
☕Maven	`org.verapdf:validation-model`	≥ 1.25.73&&< 1.30.2	1.30.2`org.verapdf:validation-model:1.30.2`
☕Maven	`org.verapdf:validation-model`	≥ 1.31.1&&< 1.31.71	1.31.71`org.verapdf:validation-model:1.31.71`
☕Maven	`org.verapdf:validation-model-jakarta`	≥ 1.25.73&&< 1.30.2	1.30.2`org.verapdf:validation-model-jakarta:1.30.2`
☕Maven	`org.verapdf:validation-model-jakarta`	≥ 1.31.1&&< 1.31.71	1.31.71`org.verapdf:validation-model-jakarta:1.31.71`

Detection & mitigation playbook

Open-source dependency

Detect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.verapdf:validation-model, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.verapdf:validation-model to 1.30.2 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2026-54078 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Restrict outbound requests from the affected component to an allowlist of hosts, block access to link-local and internal address ranges at the network layer, and require authentication on internal services so a forged request cannot reach them unauthenticated.

Frequently Asked Questions

## Summary **Description** An XML External Entity Injection (CWE-611) vulnerability in veraPDF allows a remote attacker to read arbitrary files on the server file system and perform Server-Side Request Forgery by submitting a crafted PDF containing a malicious rich-text (/RC or /RV) entry. This affects all current versions of veraPDF-validation. ## Details The vulnerability resides in veraPDF-validation `validation-model/src/main/java/org/verapdf/gf/model/tools/DictionaryKeysHelper.java` within the `getRichTextStringOrStreamEntryStringRepresentation()` method. This helper extracts

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

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