Cyber Resilience

CVE-2025-23196

RCE in Apache Ambari ≤ 2.7.9

RCECommand Injection
Published
21 January 2025
Modified
09 June 2025
Patch / advisory
View advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 8.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.013 67th percentile
Risk Priority 68 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2025-23196 is a high-severity Command Injection (CWE-77) vulnerability in Apache Ambari. Its CVSS base score is 8.8 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Command and Scripting Interpreter (T1059); ranked in the top 33% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SA-11 (Developer Testing and Evaluation) and SI-10 (Information Input Validation) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

A code injection vulnerability exists in Apache Ambari's Alert Definition feature. The flaw occurs when the script filename field supplied during alert definition is passed directly to a shell via `sh -c`, enabling arbitrary command execution. The affected component is the alert scripting mechanism within Ambari, and the issue is tracked as CWE-77 with a CVSS 3.1 score of 8.8.

An authenticated user with access to define alerts can supply a malicious filename that results in remote code execution on the Ambari server, potentially allowing full compromise of the host. No special user interaction or network-adjacent access is required beyond valid credentials.

Public advisories on the Apache mailing lists and OSS-Security list confirm that the vulnerability has been addressed in the latest Ambari releases, recommending that deployments upgrade to patched versions to eliminate the command-injection vector.

EPSS remains low at 0.0202 with no material increase since disclosure.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

A05:2025 Injection

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

A code injection vulnerability exists in the Ambari Alert Definition feature, allowing authenticated users to inject and execute arbitrary shell commands. The vulnerability arises when defining alert scripts, where the script filename field is executed using `sh -c`. An attacker…

more

with authenticated access can exploit this vulnerability to inject malicious commands, leading to remote code execution on the server. The issue has been fixed in the latest versions of Ambari.

CWE(s)
CWE-77

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1059 Command and Scripting Interpreter Execution
Adversaries may abuse command and script interpreters to execute commands, scripts, or binaries.
attack.mitre.org →
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.001 PowerShell Execution
Adversaries may abuse PowerShell commands and scripts for execution.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.003 Windows Command Shell Execution
Adversaries may abuse the Windows command shell for execution.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.004 Unix Shell Execution
Adversaries may abuse Unix shell commands and scripts for execution.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.008 Network Device CLI Execution
Adversaries may abuse scripting or built-in command line interpreters (CLI) on network devices to execute malicious command and payloads.
attack.mitre.org →
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2024-51941Same product: Apache Ambari
CVE-2023-50379Same product: Apache Ambari
CVE-2025-23195Same product: Apache Ambari
CVE-2023-50380Same product: Apache Ambari
CVE-2023-50378Same product: Apache Ambari
CVE-2024-45505Same vendor: Apache
CVE-2023-49898Same vendor: Apache
CVE-2023-32007Same vendor: Apache
CVE-2023-52291Same vendor: Apache
CVE-2024-29737Same vendor: Apache

Affected Assets

apache
ambari
≤ 2.7.9

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

—

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

—

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

—

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V1.2.3
  • V1.2.5
  • V1.2.8
  • V1.2.9

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

SA-11 Developer Testing and Evaluation good match

Developer testing and evaluation can discover command-construction flaws before deployment.

SI-10 Information Input Validation good match

Input validation directly stops construction of commands from untrusted data containing special elements.

SA-8 Security and Privacy Engineering Principles partial match

Secure engineering principles include proper neutralization and safe command construction practices.

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.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices directly require input validation and neutralization that prevent command injection.

DE.CM-09 partial match
prevents

Runtime monitoring of software and data can detect anomalous command execution resulting from injection.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Identifying recorded vulnerabilities enables remediation of command-injection flaws before exploitation.

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.

A.8.28 Secure coding mostly match
prevents

Secure coding standards require proper escaping and parameterization of commands, directly eliminating CWE-77.

A.8.29 Security testing in development and acceptance mostly match
finds

Security testing in development catches command-injection vulnerabilities before release.

A.8.25 Secure development life cycle partial match
prevents

Secure development life cycle mandates input validation and command construction practices that directly prevent command injection.

A.8.26 Application security requirements partial match
prevents

Application security requirements explicitly call for controls against injection flaws including command injection.

A.8.27 Secure system architecture and engineering principles partial match
prevents

Secure architecture principles reduce the attack surface but do not prescribe the specific neutralization techniques needed.

A.8.31 Separation of development, test and production environments none match
none

Environment separation limits the blast radius of an exploited command injection but does not prevent the flaw itself.

References