GHSA-gr3c-q7xf-47vh
HIGHXXE vulnerability in XSLT parsing in `org.hl7.fhir.core`
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
ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.dstu3☕ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.r4☕ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.r4b☕ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.r5☕ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.utilities☕ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.dstu2016mayReal-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
XSLT parsing performed by various components are vulnerable to XML external entity injections. A processed XML file with a malicious DTD tag ( <!DOCTYPE foo [<!ENTITY example SYSTEM "/etc/passwd"> ]> could produce XML containing data from the host system. This impacts use cases where org.hl7.fhir.core is being used to within a host where external clients can submit XML.
Details
This is related to https://github.com/hapifhir/org.hl7.fhir.core/security/advisories/GHSA-6cr6-ph3p-f5rf, in which its fix ( https://github.com/hapifhir/org.hl7.fhir.core/issues/1571, https://github.com/hapifhir/org.hl7.fhir.core/pull/1717) was incomplete.
References
https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/611.html https://cheatsheetseries.owasp.org/cheatsheets/XML_External_Entity_Prevention_Cheat_Sheet.html#jaxp-documentbuilderfactory-saxparserfactory-and-dom4j
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.dstu3 | all versions | 6.4.0 |
| ☕Maven | ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.r4 | all versions | 6.4.0 |
| ☕Maven | ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.r4b | all versions | 6.4.0 |
| ☕Maven | ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.r5 | all versions | 6.4.0 |
| ☕Maven | ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.utilities | all versions | 6.4.0 |
| ☕Maven | ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.dstu2016may | all versions | 6.4.0 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.dstu3. 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 ca.uhn.hapi.fhir:org.hl7.fhir.dstu3 to 6.4.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-gr3c-q7xf-47vh 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 GHSA-gr3c-q7xf-47vh 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 GHSA-gr3c-q7xf-47vh. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-gr3c-q7xf-47vh in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-gr3c-q7xf-47vh across Maven dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.