Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HSummary
CVE-2026-40048 is a high-severity Deserialization of Untrusted Data (CWE-502) vulnerability in Apache Camel. Its CVSS base score is 7.8 (High).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploit Public-Facing Application (T1190); ranked at the 16th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); 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.
CVE-2026-40048 is a deserialization vulnerability in the Camel-PQC FileBasedKeyLifecycleManager class of Apache Camel. This class deserializes the contents of `<keyId>.key` files in the configured key directory using `java.io.ObjectInputStream` without applying any `ObjectInputFilter` or class-loading restrictions. The cast to `java.security.KeyPair` occurs only after `readObject()` has returned, allowing side effects from deserialized objects to execute beforehand. The vulnerability affects Apache Camel versions from 4.19.0 before 4.20.0 and from 4.18.0 before 4.18.2.
An attacker who can write to the key directory—via path traversal, misconfigured filesystem permissions, a compromised key provisioning pipeline, or symlink attacks—can place a crafted serialized Java object there. When the application performs normal key lifecycle operations, deserialization of the malicious object results in arbitrary code execution in the context of the Camel application. The issue has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.8 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) and is associated with CWE-502 (Deserialization of Untrusted Data).
Apache Camel advisories recommend upgrading to version 4.20.0, which addresses the issue by replacing `java.io.ObjectInputStream`-based key and metadata storage with standard PKCS#8 (private key) and X.509 SubjectPublicKeyInfo (public key) Base64 JSON encoding. Users on the 4.18.x LTS release stream should upgrade to 4.18.2. Additional details are available in the official advisory at https://camel.apache.org/security/CVE-2026-40048.html and the oss-security mailing list announcement at http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/04/26/6.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2026-25790
Vulnerability Data
The Camel-PQC FileBasedKeyLifecycleManager class deserializes the contents of `<keyId>.key` files in the configured key directory using java.io.ObjectInputStream without applying any ObjectInputFilter or class-loading restrictions. The cast to `java.security.KeyPair` is evaluated only after `readObject()` has already returned, so any `readObject()` side…
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effects in the deserialized object run before the type check. An attacker who can write to the key directory used by a Camel application — for example through a path traversal into the directory, misconfigured filesystem permissions on the volume where keys are stored, a compromised key provisioning pipeline, or a symlink attack — can place a crafted serialized Java object that, when deserialized during normal key lifecycle operations, results in arbitrary code execution in the context of the application. This issue affects Apache Camel: from 4.19.0 before 4.20.0, from 4.18.0 before 4.18.2. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 4.20.0, which fixes the issue by replacing java.io.ObjectInputStream-based key and metadata storage with standard PKCS#8 (private key) / X.509 SubjectPublicKeyInfo (public key) Base64 JSON encoding. For users on the 4.18.x LTS releases stream, upgrade to 4.18.2.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Developer testing and evaluation can uncover deserialization flaws before deployment.
Input validation directly stops deserialization of untrusted data by ensuring inputs are valid before processing.
Engineering principles such as safe deserialization and input sanitization structurally prevent the weakness from being introduced.
Integrity verification tools can detect malformed or tampered serialized data after the fact.
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-02 addresses only post-deployment updates/patching and cannot prevent introduction of unsafe deserialization code, yet it can remediate some instances when the flaw exists in outdated libraries or components.
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.
Security testing includes validation of deserialization routines and the use of untrusted data, reducing the likelihood that unsafe object reconstruction will be deployed.
Requiring vetted libraries, regular updates and SAST before release reduces the likelihood that deserialization logic will accept and act on attacker-controlled serialized objects.
Regular scanning of third-party libraries and timely patching reduce the likelihood that unsafe deserialization vulnerabilities remain active.
Mandatory malware scanning of data received over networks or storage media intercepts malicious serialized payloads before they are deserialized by the target application.