Denial of Service Vulnerability in libxstream-java: Stack Overflow Risk

Background

libxstream-java is a library that facilitates the serialization of Java objects to XML and vice versa. It is widely used in Java applications for data exchange and persistence. The library's functionality allows developers to easily convert complex Java objects into XML format, making it easier to store and transmit data. However, certain versions of libxstream-java are vulnerable to a denial of service attack due to improper handling of input streams, which can lead to application crashes.

Vulnerability Detail

The vulnerability identified as CVE-2022-41966 affects versions of libxstream-java prior to 1.4.20. It allows a remote attacker to exploit the library by manipulating the processed input stream, leading to a stack overflow error. This occurs due to the hash code implementation for collections and maps, which can force recursive hash calculations, ultimately causing the application to terminate unexpectedly. The severity of this vulnerability is rated at CVSS 8.2, indicating a high risk of denial of service.

sudo apt-get install --only-upgrade libxstream-java

Workaround

For users who are unable to immediately update the package, a potential workaround is to change the default implementation of java.util.Map and java.util to avoid using HashMap or HashSet. This can be done by implementing a custom map that does not rely on the default hash code calculations. Here is a code example:

import java.util.Map;
import java.util.HashMap;

public class CustomMap extends HashMap<String, String> {
    // Custom implementation to avoid stack overflow
}

Conclusion

In summary, CVE-2022-41966 poses a significant risk to applications using vulnerable versions of libxstream-java, allowing for denial of service attacks through stack overflow errors. It is crucial to update to version 1.4.20 or later to mitigate this risk. Users should also consider the provided workaround if immediate updates are not feasible.

See every vulnerability recorded for libxstream-java →

FAQ