GHSA-4v8g-86x5-3vrc · Severity: critical · Ecosystem: maven — Apache OpenNLP DictionaryEntryPersistor Vulnerable to XML External Entity (XXE) via Unsanitized Dictionary Parsing
XML External Entity (XXE) via Unsanitized Dictionary Parsing in Apache OpenNLP DictionaryEntryPersistor Versions Affected: before 2.5.9, before 3.0.0-M3 Description: The DictionaryEntryPersistor class initializes a static SAXParserFactory at class-load time without enabling FEATURE_SECURE_PROCESSING or disabling DTD processing. When create(InputStream, EntryInserter) is invoked, the only feature set on the XMLReader is namespace support — external entity resolution and DOCTYPE declarations remain fully enabled. An attacker who can supply a crafted dictionary file (e.g., a stop-word list or domain dictionary) containing a malicious DOCTYPE declaration can trigger local file disclosure via file:// entity references or server-side request forgery via http:// entity references during SAX parsing, before the application processes a single dictionary entry. This is inconsistent with the project's own XmlUtil.createSaxParser() helper, which correctly sets FEATURE_SECURE_PROCESSING and disallow-doctype-decl and is used by all other XML parsing paths in the codebase. The public Dictionary(InputStream) constructor delegates directly to this method and is the documented API for loading user-supplied dictionaries, making untrusted input a realistic scenario. Mitigation: 2.x users should upgrade to 2.5.9. 3.x users should upgrade to 3.0.0-M3. Users who cannot upgrade immediately should ensure that all dictionary files are sourced from trusted origins and should consider wrapping the Dictionary(InputStream) constructor with input validation that rejects any XML containing a DOCTYPE declaration before it reaches the parser.
Conclusion & alert: CVE-2026-40682 is rated Moderate Risk (47.8/100): CVSS Critical severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.40%). Mandatory action: Review affected assets and schedule remediation.
Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.
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 | 0.09% | 0.40% | +0.32% |
| 2 | 2026-05-07 | 0.03% | 0.09% | +0.06% |
| 3 | 2026-05-05 | — | 0.03% | — |
Full EPSS history (3 records total)
CVSS metrics for this CVE.
| Base score | Version | Severity | Vector | Exploitability | Impact | Score source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9.1 | 3.1 | CRITICAL |
|
3.9 | 5.2 | 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0 |
GHSA-4v8g-86x5-3vrc · Severity: critical · Ecosystem: maven — Apache OpenNLP DictionaryEntryPersistor Vulnerable to XML External Entity (XXE) via Unsanitized Dictionary Parsing
| vendor | priority | summary | link |
|---|---|---|---|
debian
|
not yet assigned | CVE-2026-40682 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (apache-opennlp), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): open 3, resolved 2. | https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2026-40682 |
ubuntu
|
medium | CVE-2026-40682 medium priority: Ubuntu including 1 source packages (apache-opennlp), 6 status rows across 6 suites (focal, jammy, noble, questing, resolute, upstream): needs-triage 6. | https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2026-40682 |
| URL | Tags |
|---|---|
| https://lists.apache.org/thread/r6jpt0qr9nj67gqhppqg7jxf8vsbo0w6 | Mailing List Vendor Advisory |
| http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/05/01/19 | Mailing List Third Party Advisory |