GHSA-m9p2-j4hg-g373 is a high-severity (CVSS 7.8) Improper Privilege Management vulnerability in org.apache.cassandra:cassandra-all. A fix is available for org.apache.cassandra:cassandra-all — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Apache Cassandra: Privilege escalation when enabling FQL/Audit logs
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 GHSA-m9p2-j4hg-g373.
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
GHSA-m9p2-j4hg-g373 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 377,166 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
org.apache.cassandra:cassandra-all☕org.apache.cassandra:cassandra-allReal-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
Privilege escalation when enabling FQL/Audit logs allows user with JMX access to run arbitrary commands as the user running Apache Cassandra This issue affects Apache Cassandra: from 4.0.0 through 4.0.9, from 4.1.0 through 4.1.1.
WORKAROUND The vulnerability requires nodetool/JMX access to be exploitable, disable access for any non-trusted users.
MITIGATION Upgrade to 4.0.10 or 4.1.2 and leave the new FQL/Auditlog configuration property allow_nodetool_archive_command as false.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.apache.cassandra:cassandra-all | ≥ 4.1.0&&< 4.1.2 | 4.1.2org.apache.cassandra:cassandra-all:4.1.2 |
| ☕Maven | org.apache.cassandra:cassandra-all | ≥ 4.0.0&&< 4.0.10 | 4.0.10org.apache.cassandra:cassandra-all:4.0.10 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.apache.cassandra:cassandra-all, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update org.apache.cassandra:cassandra-all to 4.1.2 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-m9p2-j4hg-g373 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 GHSA-m9p2-j4hg-g373 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to GHSA-m9p2-j4hg-g373. 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-m9p2-j4hg-g373 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds GHSA-m9p2-j4hg-g373 across Maven dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.