OpenAM vulnerable to user impersonation using SAMLv1.x SSO processGHSA-4mh8-9wq6-rjxg
CRITICALFix: OpenIdentityPlatform/OpenAM#624GHSA-4mh8-9wq6-rjxg is a critical-severity (CVSS 9.1) Improper Authentication vulnerability in org.openidentityplatform.openam:openam-federation-library. A fix is available for org.openidentityplatform.openam:openam-federation-library — see the affected versions and patch details below.
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.
- 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 GHSA-4mh8-9wq6-rjxg.
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
org.openidentityplatform.openam:openam-federation-libraryReal-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
Impact
OpenAM up to version 14.7.2 does not properly validate the signature of SAML responses received as part of the SAMLv1.x Single Sign-On process. Attackers can use this fact to impersonate any OpenAM user, including the administrator, by sending a specially crafted SAML response to the SAMLPOSTProfileServlet servlet.
Patches
This problem has been patched in OpenAM 14.7.3-SNAPSHOT and later
Workarounds
One should comment servlet SAMLPOSTProfileServlet in web.xml or disable SAML in OpenAM
<servlet>
<description>SAMLPOSTProfileServlet</description>
<servlet-name>SAMLPOSTProfileServlet</servlet-name>
<servlet-class>com.sun.identity.saml.servlet.SAMLPOSTProfileServlet</servlet-class>
</servlet>
...
<servlet-mapping>
<servlet-name>SAMLSOAPReceiver</servlet-name>
<url-pattern>/SAMLSOAPReceiver</url-pattern>
</servlet-mapping>
References
#624
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.openidentityplatform.openam:openam-federation-library | all versions | 14.7.3org.openidentityplatform.openam:openam-federation-library:14.7.3 |
Affected Products
openamopenidentityplatformDetection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.openidentityplatform.openam:openam-federation-library, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.openidentityplatform.openam:openam-federation-library to 14.7.3 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-4mh8-9wq6-rjxg is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Put an independent control in front of the weakness: restrict the affected endpoint or interface to trusted networks, require an additional authentication factor or proxy-level check, and invalidate existing sessions and credentials in case the flaw has already been used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-4mh8-9wq6-rjxg in your dependencies?
Find it across Maven, including transitive dependencies.