CVE intelligence and bounded remediation

CVE-2020-26258 — XStream is a Java library to serialize objects to XML and back again

High CVSS 7.7

XStream is a Java library to serialize objects to XML and back again. In XStream before version 1.4.15, a Server-Side Forgery Request vulnerability can be activated when unmarshalling. The vulnerability may allow a remote attacker to request data from internal resources that are not publicly available only by manipulating the processed input stream. If you rely on XStream's default blacklist of the Security Framework, you will have to use at least version 1.4.15. The reported vulnerability does not exist if running Java 15 or higher. No user is affected who followed the recommendation to setup XStream's Security Framework with a whitelist! Anyone relying on XStream's default blacklist can immediately switch to a whilelist for the allowed types to avoid the vulnerability. Users of XStream 1.4.14 or below who still want to use XStream default blacklist can use a workaround described in more detailed in the referenced advisories.

Severity
High
CVSS
7.7 (3.1)
Published
2020-12-16
CISA KEV
Not currently listed
Ecosystem
java/maven
Weaknesses
CWE-918

Affected products

  • apache / struts
  • xstream / xstream
  • debian / debian_linux / 9.0
  • debian / debian_linux / 10.0
  • fedoraproject / fedora / 33
  • fedoraproject / fedora / 34

Showing 6 representative product identities from 7 source matches. Confirm exact affected versions with the linked vendor and NVD evidence.

Matched remediation archetype

Server-side request forgery and unintended proxying

This catalog composition supplies bounded fallback guidance. Explicitly reviewed curated workflows load with the complete record below.

Check exposure

  • Inventory server-side URL fetchers, webhooks, importers, previews, redirects, proxies, and protocol handlers reachable from untrusted input.
  • Map egress paths to internal services, metadata endpoints, loopback, private address space, and privileged control planes.
  • Review DNS resolution, redirect, proxy, credential-forwarding, and URL parsing behavior without requesting sensitive targets.

Remediate safely

  • Replace arbitrary destinations with named integrations or a strict allowlist of schemes, hosts, ports, and paths.
  • Resolve and validate every destination and redirect hop, then enforce egress policy independently of application checks.
  • Remove ambient credentials and sensitive headers from fetchers; apply response size, time, and content limits.

Authoritative sources

Complete CVE record and remediation plan

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