When using FORM authentication with Apache Tomcat 9.0.0.M1 to 9.0.29, 8.5.0 to 8.5.49 and 7.0.0 to 7.0.98 there was a narrow window where an attacker could perform a session fixation attack. The window was considered too narrow for an exploit to be practical but, erring on the side of caution, this issue has been treated as a security vulnerability.
Authenticating a user, or otherwise establishing a new user session, without invalidating any existing session identifier gives an attacker the opportunity to steal authenticated sessions.
| Name | Vendor | Start Version | End Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tomcat | Apache | 7.0.0 (including) | 7.0.98 (including) |
| Tomcat | Apache | 8.5.0 (including) | 8.5.49 (including) |
| Tomcat | Apache | 9.0.0 (including) | 9.0.29 (including) |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | RedHat | tomcat-0:7.0.76-15.el7 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.6 Extended Update Support | RedHat | tomcat-0:7.0.76-11.el7_6 | * |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.7 Extended Update Support | RedHat | tomcat-0:7.0.76-12.el7_7 | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3.1 | RedHat | tomcat | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3 for RHEL 6 | RedHat | tomcat7-0:7.0.70-38.ep7.el6 | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3 for RHEL 6 | RedHat | tomcat8-0:8.0.36-42.ep7.el6 | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3 for RHEL 6 | RedHat | tomcat-native-0:1.2.23-21.redhat_21.ep7.el6 | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3 for RHEL 7 | RedHat | tomcat7-0:7.0.70-38.ep7.el7 | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3 for RHEL 7 | RedHat | tomcat8-0:8.0.36-42.ep7.el7 | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 3 for RHEL 7 | RedHat | tomcat-native-0:1.2.23-21.redhat_21.ep7.el7 | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 5.3 on RHEL 6 | RedHat | jws5-tomcat-0:9.0.30-3.redhat_4.1.el6jws | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 5.3 on RHEL 6 | RedHat | jws5-tomcat-native-0:1.2.23-4.redhat_4.el6jws | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 5.3 on RHEL 7 | RedHat | jws5-tomcat-0:9.0.30-3.redhat_4.1.el7jws | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 5.3 on RHEL 7 | RedHat | jws5-tomcat-native-0:1.2.23-4.redhat_4.el7jws | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 5.3 on RHEL 8 | RedHat | jws5-tomcat-0:9.0.30-3.redhat_4.1.el8jws | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server 5.3 on RHEL 8 | RedHat | jws5-tomcat-native-0:1.2.23-4.redhat_4.el8jws | * |
| Red Hat JBoss Web Server (JWS) 5.3 | RedHat | tomcat | * |
| Tomcat7 | Ubuntu | bionic | * |
| Tomcat7 | Ubuntu | esm-apps/bionic | * |
| Tomcat7 | Ubuntu | esm-apps/xenial | * |
| Tomcat7 | Ubuntu | esm-infra-legacy/trusty | * |
| Tomcat7 | Ubuntu | trusty | * |
| Tomcat7 | Ubuntu | trusty/esm | * |
| Tomcat7 | Ubuntu | upstream | * |
| Tomcat7 | Ubuntu | xenial | * |
| Tomcat8 | Ubuntu | bionic | * |
| Tomcat8 | Ubuntu | esm-apps/bionic | * |
| Tomcat8 | Ubuntu | esm-infra/xenial | * |
| Tomcat8 | Ubuntu | trusty | * |
| Tomcat8 | Ubuntu | upstream | * |
| Tomcat8 | Ubuntu | xenial | * |
| Tomcat9 | Ubuntu | bionic | * |
| Tomcat9 | Ubuntu | disco | * |
| Tomcat9 | Ubuntu | eoan | * |
| Tomcat9 | Ubuntu | esm-apps/bionic | * |
| Tomcat9 | Ubuntu | trusty | * |
| Tomcat9 | Ubuntu | upstream | * |
Such a scenario is commonly observed when:
In the generic exploit of session fixation vulnerabilities, an attacker creates a new session on a web application and records the associated session identifier. The attacker then causes the victim to associate, and possibly authenticate, against the server using that session identifier, giving the attacker access to the user’s account through the active session.