Arbitrary code execution in H2 ConsoleGHSA-45hx-wfhj-473x
CRITICALGHSA-45hx-wfhj-473x is a critical-severity (CVSS 9.8) CWE-88 vulnerability in com.h2database:h2. 3 public exploit or proof-of-concept references are indexed, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for com.h2database:h2 — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Exploitation Status
Proof-of-concept exploit code exists
- CISA’s SSVC triage found public proof-of-concept exploit code for this CVE, though no confirmed active exploitation.
- CISA assesses this as automatable — exploitation doesn’t require manual, per-target effort, which raises the odds of mass scanning and opportunistic attacks.
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for GHSA-45hx-wfhj-473x.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
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
com.h2database:h2Real-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
H2 Console before 2.1.210 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a jdbc:h2:mem JDBC URL containing the IGNORE_UNKNOWN_SETTINGS=TRUE;FORBID_CREATION=FALSE;INIT=RUNSCRIPT substring, a different vulnerability than CVE-2021-42392.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | com.h2database:h2 | all versions | 2.1.210com.h2database:h2:2.1.210 |
Affected Products
debian linuxdebianh2h2databasecommunications cloud native core consoleoracleResearch use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for com.h2database:h2, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update com.h2database:h2 to 2.1.210 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-45hx-wfhj-473x 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.
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.
In OpenShift Container Platform (OCP) the openshift-enterprise-3.11/metrics-hawkular-metrics-container container image ships a vulnerable version of h2 as part of the underlying images, but as it uses standard configuration and Console is not enabled/started by default, therefore the impact by this vulnerability is…
| Product | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Fuse 7.11 | h2 | RHSA-2022:5532 |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform | com.h2database/h2:1.4.197.redhat-00004 | RHSA-2022:4922 |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7.1 EUS for RHEL 7 | eap7-h2database-0:1.4.197-2.redhat_00005.1.ep7.el7 | RHSA-2024:10208 |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7.3 EUS for RHEL 7 | eap7-apache-cxf-0:3.4.10-1.SP1_redhat_00001.1.el7eap | RHSA-2024:10207 |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7.4 for RHEL 8 | eap7-h2database-0:1.4.197-2.redhat_00004.1.el8eap | RHSA-2022:4919 |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7.4 on RHEL 7 | eap7-h2database-0:1.4.197-2.redhat_00004.1.el7eap | RHSA-2022:4918 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-45hx-wfhj-473x in your dependencies?
Find it across Maven, including transitive dependencies.