CVE-2018-11776

Exp

Apache Struts versions 2.3 to 2.3.34 and 2.5 to 2.5.16 suffer from possible Remote Code Execution when alwaysSelectFullNamespace is true (either by user or a plugin like Convention Plugin) and then: results are used with no namespace and in same time, its upper package have no or wildcard namespace and similar to results, same possibility when using url tag which doesn't have value and action set and in same time, its upper package have no or wildcard namespace.

Published: 2018-08-22 Last update: 2025-10-27 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Analyzed，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2018-11776 is rated Critical Active Threat (97.4/100): CVSS High severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 99.99%, 100th percentile). CISA KEV confirms active exploitation (added 2021-11-03) affecting Apache / Struts. Unauthenticated remote administrative access may be possible. EPSS rose +5.56% over the last day, indicating growing attacker interest. The CISA remediation deadline has passed—treat as an emergency patch priority.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

CISA KEV Record for CVE-2018-11776

Name: Apache Struts Remote Code Execution Vulnerability · CISA KEV detail

Exploit added: 2021-11-03

Action due: 2022-05-03

Required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Public exploit references (Exploit-DB) for CVE-2018-11776

EDB-ID Source Kind Published Link
45367 exploit_db edb 2018-09-10 Exploit-DB ↗
45260 exploit_db edb 2018-08-26 Exploit-DB ↗
45262 exploit_db edb 2018-08-25 Exploit-DB ↗
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Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2018-11776

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-15 94.43% 99.99% +5.56%
2 2025-11-21 94.30% 94.43% +0.13%
3 2025-11-18 — 94.30% —

Full EPSS history (11 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2018-11776

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
8.1 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 2.2 5.9 [email protected]
8.1 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 2.2 5.9 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
9.3 2.0 HIGH
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:M)
Exploitation needs some favorable conditions, but not exceptional ones.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:C)
Complete confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:C)
Complete integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:C)
Complete availability impact.
 8.6 10.0 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2018-11776

GitHub Security Advisory for CVE-2018-11776

GHSA-cr6j-3jp9-rw65 · Severity: high · Ecosystem: maven — Apache Struts vulnerable to remote command execution (RCE) due to improper input validation

OS Trackers for CVE-2018-11776

vendor priority summary link
redhat critical — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2018-11776
ubuntu medium CVE-2018-11776 medium priority: Ubuntu including 1 source packages (libstruts1.2-java), 4 status rows across 4 suites (bionic, trusty, upstream, xenial): DNE 3, not-affected 1. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2018-11776

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2018-11776

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
apache struts >= 2.0.4, < 2.3.35 cpe:2.3:a:apache:struts:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache struts >= 2.5.0, < 2.5.17 cpe:2.3:a:apache:struts:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
netapp active_iq_unified_manager >= 7.3 cpe:2.3:a:netapp:active_iq_unified_manager:*:*:*:*:*:windows:*:*
netapp active_iq_unified_manager >= 9.5 cpe:2.3:a:netapp:active_iq_unified_manager:*:*:*:*:*:vmware_vsphere:*:*
netapp oncommand_insight — cpe:2.3:a:netapp:oncommand_insight:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
netapp oncommand_workflow_automation — cpe:2.3:a:netapp:oncommand_workflow_automation:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
netapp snapcenter — cpe:2.3:a:netapp:snapcenter:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle communications_policy_management < 12.5.0 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:communications_policy_management:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle enterprise_manager_base_platform 13.3.0.0 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:enterprise_manager_base_platform:13.3.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle enterprise_manager_base_platform 13.4.0.0 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:enterprise_manager_base_platform:13.4.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle mysql_enterprise_monitor <= 3.4.9.4237 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:mysql_enterprise_monitor:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle mysql_enterprise_monitor >= 4.0.0, <= 4.0.6.5281 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:mysql_enterprise_monitor:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle mysql_enterprise_monitor >= 8.0.0, <= 8.0.2.8191 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:mysql_enterprise_monitor:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2018-11776

URL Tags
http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/172830/Apache-Struts-Remote-Code-Execution.html Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://www.arubanetworks.com/assets/alert/ARUBA-PSA-2018-005.txt Broken Link Mailing List Third Party Advisory
http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/security-advisory/alert-cve-2018-11776-5072787.html Patch Third Party Advisory
http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/security-advisory/cpuoct2018-4428296.html Patch Third Party Advisory
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/105125 Broken Link Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1041547 Broken Link Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1041888 Broken Link Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
https://cwiki.apache.org/confluence/display/WW/S2-057 Issue Tracking Third Party Advisory
https://github.com/hook-s3c/CVE-2018-11776-Python-PoC Exploit Third Party Advisory
https://lgtm.com/blog/apache_struts_CVE-2018-11776 Exploit Third Party Advisory
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r6d03e45b81eab03580cf7f8bb51cb3e9a1b10a2cc0c6a2d3cc92ed0c%40%3Cannounce.apache.org%3E Mailing List
https://psirt.global.sonicwall.com/vuln-detail/SNWLID-2018-0012 Third Party Advisory
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20180822-0001/ Third Party Advisory
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20181018-0002/ Third Party Advisory
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/45260/ Exploit Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/45262/ Exploit Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/45367/ Exploit Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpujul2020.html Third Party Advisory
https://www.oracle.com/technetwork/security-advisory/cpujan2019-5072801.html Patch Third Party Advisory
https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2018-11776 US Government Resource
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