CVE-2023-42794
Apache Tomcat 8.5.85 – 8.5.94
Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:HSummary
CVE-2023-42794 is a medium-severity Incomplete Cleanup (CWE-459) vulnerability in Apache Tomcat. Its CVSS base score is 5.9 (Medium).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Data from Local System (T1005); ranked in the top 23% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2023-2763
Vulnerability Data
Incomplete Cleanup vulnerability in Apache Tomcat. The internal fork of Commons FileUpload packaged with Apache Tomcat 9.0.70 through 9.0.80 and 8.5.85 through 8.5.93 included an unreleased, in progress refactoring that exposed a potential denial of service on Windows if a…
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web application opened a stream for an uploaded file but failed to close the stream. The file would never be deleted from disk creating the possibility of an eventual denial of service due to the disk being full. Other, EOL versions may also be affected. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 9.0.81 onwards or 8.5.94 onwards, which fixes the issue.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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V6.4.1
Likely Mitigating Controls AI
Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.
Mandates complete sanitization during cleanup so that shared resources (memory, caches, buffers) do not retain data across subjects.
Operational retention schedules mandate complete cleanup of temporary or residual sensitive data after use.
Termination of the non-persistent artifact guarantees cleanup of temporary state, directly countering incomplete cleanup weaknesses.
Fail-safe procedures can explicitly require cleanup of temporary state, resources, or privileges on failure to avoid leaving the system in an inconsistent state.
The explicit delete step when information is no longer needed implements the cleanup that this weakness omits.
Enforces complete cleanup and sanitization steps during disposal, closing gaps that leave data remnants on retired components.
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Secure-development practices and coding standards normally require proper resource release and cleanup.
Life-cycle management encompasses disposal of temporary resources but does not specifically target runtime cleanup bugs.
Explicitly calls for removing sensitive data after use, directly addressing one class of incomplete cleanup.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Explicitly requires secure deletion of temporary or residual data, directly addressing incomplete cleanup.
SDLC practices include cleanup steps, yet the weakness can still occur if those steps are omitted.
Secure-coding rules can mandate explicit cleanup of temporary resources, but do not guarantee it.
Change-management processes may require cleanup verification, but the control itself does not address the weakness.