CVE-2022-22720 | HTTP request smuggling vulnerability in Apache HTTP Server 2.4.52 and earlier

Apache HTTP Server 2.4.52 and earlier fails to close inbound connection when errors are encountered discarding the request body, exposing the server to HTTP Request Smuggling

Published: 2022-03-14 Last update: 2024-11-21 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2022-22720 is rated High Risk (71.4/100): CVSS Critical severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 25.96%, 96th percentile). Core evidence: EPSS ranks this CVE among the most likely to be exploited in the near term. Mandatory action: High exploitation likelihood—assess exposure and prioritize remediation.

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

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2022-22720

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 2026-06-11 27.46% 25.96% -1.50%
2 2026-03-09 25.96% 27.46% +1.50%
3 2026-03-04 25.96%

Full EPSS history (77 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2022-22720

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
9.8 3.1 CRITICAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/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:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
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.
3.9 5.9 [email protected]
7.5 2.0 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:L)
Exploitation conditions are straightforward and predictable.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P)
Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:P)
Partial integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:P)
Partial availability impact.
10.0 6.4 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2022-22720

OS Trackers for CVE-2022-22720

vendor priority summary link
alpine critical CVE-2022-22720: 1 source package rows (apache2); 8 state rows across 8 repos (3.12-main, 3.17-main, 3.18-main, 3.19-main, 3.20-main, 3.21-main, 3.22-main, edge-main); fixed 8, open 0. https://security.alpinelinux.org/vuln/CVE-2022-22720
debian not yet assigned CVE-2022-22720 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (apache2), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2022-22720
gentoo high CVE-2022-22720: 1 GLSA(s) (202208-20), 2 atom(s) (app-admin/apache-tools, www-servers/apache); latest impact high. https://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?quicksearch=CVE-2022-22720
redhat high https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2022-22720
suse high CVE-2022-22720 severity important: SUSE including 317 source package names (amazon/suse-sles-15-sp1-chost-byos-v20210304-hvm-ssd-x86_64, amazon/suse-sles-15-sp1-chost-byos-v20220127-hvm-ssd-x86_64, …), 598 product×package rows across 73 product lines (HPE Helion OpenStack 8, Image SLES15-SP3-EC2-HVM, … (73 product lines)): Fixed 351, Known Affected 231, Known Not Affected 16. https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2022-22720/
ubuntu medium CVE-2022-22720 medium priority: Ubuntu including 1 source packages (apache2), 7 status rows across 7 suites (bionic, focal, impish, jammy, trusty, upstream, xenial): released 7. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2022-22720

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2022-22720

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
apache http_server <= 2.4.52 cpe:2.3:a:apache:http_server:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
fedoraproject fedora 34 cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:34:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
fedoraproject fedora 35 cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:35:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
fedoraproject fedora 36 cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:36:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
debian debian_linux 9.0 cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle enterprise_manager_ops_center 12.4.0.0 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:enterprise_manager_ops_center:12.4.0.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle http_server 12.2.1.3.0 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:http_server:12.2.1.3.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle http_server 12.2.1.4.0 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:http_server:12.2.1.4.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle zfs_storage_appliance_kit 8.8 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:zfs_storage_appliance_kit:8.8:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2020-001:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2021-001:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2021-002:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2021-003:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2021-004:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2021-005:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2021-006:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2021-007:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2021-008:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2022-001:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2022-002:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2022-003:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple macos < 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:macos:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple macos >= 11.0, < 11.6.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:macos:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple macos >= 12.0, <= 12.4 cpe:2.3:o:apple:macos:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2022-22720

URL Tags
http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2022/May/33 Mailing List Third Party Advisory
http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2022/May/35 Mailing List Third Party Advisory
http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2022/May/38 Mailing List Third Party Advisory
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2022/03/14/3 Mailing List Third Party Advisory
https://httpd.apache.org/security/vulnerabilities_24.html Vendor Advisory
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2022/03/msg00033.html Mailing List Third Party Advisory
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/RGWILBORT67SHMSLYSQZG2NMXGCMPUZO/
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/X73C35MMMZGBVPQQCH7LQZUMYZNQA5FO/
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/Z7H26WJ6TPKNWV3QKY4BHKUKQVUTZJTD/
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202208-20 Third Party Advisory
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20220321-0001/ Third Party Advisory
https://support.apple.com/kb/HT213255 Third Party Advisory
https://support.apple.com/kb/HT213256 Third Party Advisory
https://support.apple.com/kb/HT213257 Third Party Advisory
https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpuapr2022.html Patch Third Party Advisory
https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpujul2022.html Third Party Advisory
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