How severe is GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43?

GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 has a CVSS score of 8.8/10, rated HIGH. Immediate patching is strongly recommended.

Which packages are affected by GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43?

GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 affects the following packages: org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.10 (Maven), org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.11 (Maven), org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.12 (Maven), org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.13 (Maven), org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.8.0 (Maven), org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.8.2 (Maven), org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.9.1 (Maven), org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.9.2 (Maven). Ecosystems affected: Maven.

How do I fix GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43?

No patched version of org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.10 has shipped for GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 yet. Where your build allows, override or pin the dependency away from the vulnerable range, and apply any maintainer-recommended mitigation.

How do I detect GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 in my Maven dependencies?

Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.10. 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.

How do I mitigate GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

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 does O3 Security protect against GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43?

O3 pinpoints whether GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.

Is GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 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 GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43?

GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 0.9%, placing it in the 54th 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 GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43?

GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 is classified as Deserialization of Untrusted Data (CWE-502). This weakness type describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation. This is a high-impact weakness class that often enables remote code execution or data exposure.

When was GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 published, and has it been updated?

GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 was published on June 10, 2025 and was last updated on December 11, 2025. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43: kafka_2.10 Remote Code Execution (High 8.8)

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

0.9%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Lower Risk54th percentile-0.03%

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

8 pkgs affected

☕org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.10☕org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.11☕org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.12☕org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.13☕org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.8.0☕org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.8.2☕org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.9.1☕org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.9.2

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

In CVE-2023-25194, we announced the RCE/Denial of service attack via SASL JAAS JndiLoginModule configuration in Kafka Connect API. But not only Kafka Connect API is vulnerable to this attack, the Apache Kafka brokers also have this vulnerability. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker needs to be able to connect to the Kafka cluster and have the AlterConfigs permission on the cluster resource.

Since Apache Kafka 3.4.0, we have added a system property ("-Dorg.apache.kafka.disallowed.login.modules") to disable the problematic login modules usage in SASL JAAS configuration. Also by default "com.sun.security.auth.module.JndiLoginModule" is disabled in Apache Kafka 3.4.0, and "com.sun.security.auth.module.JndiLoginModule,com.sun.security.auth.module.LdapLoginModule" is disabled by default in in Apache Kafka 3.9.1/4.0.0

Affected Packages

8 total 2 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
☕Maven	`org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.10`	all versions	No fix
☕Maven	`org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.11`	all versions	No fix
☕Maven	`org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.12`	all versions	3.4.0
☕Maven	`org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.13`	all versions	3.4.0
☕Maven	`org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.8.0`	all versions	No fix
☕Maven	`org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.8.2`	all versions	No fix

Detection & mitigation playbook

Open-source dependency

Detect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.10. 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
No patched version of org.apache.kafka:kafka_2.10 has shipped for GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 yet. Where your build allows, override or pin the dependency away from the vulnerable range, and apply any maintainer-recommended mitigation.
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-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 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-mcwh-c9pg-xw43. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.

Frequently Asked Questions

In CVE-2023-25194, we announced the RCE/Denial of service attack via SASL JAAS JndiLoginModule configuration in Kafka Connect API. But not only Kafka Connect API is vulnerable to this attack, the Apache Kafka brokers also have this vulnerability. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker needs to be able to connect to the Kafka cluster and have the AlterConfigs permission on the cluster resource. Since Apache Kafka 3.4.0, we have added a system property ("-Dorg.apache.kafka.disallowed.login.modules") to disable the problematic login modules usage in SASL JAAS configuration. Also by default

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

Is GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 in your dependencies?

O3 detects GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43 across Maven dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.

Scan my dependencies How O3 SCA works

GHSA-mcwh-c9pg-xw43