Threats / Apache / CVE-2017-12617
CVE-2017-12617
· EUVD no mirror located
· GCVE no mirror located
Verified 2026-08-04
Apache Tomcat vulnerability
Apache Tomcat allows remote attackers to upload and execute arbitrary JSP files via specially crafted requests, enabling remote code execution on affected servers.
Verdict
Today item — known-exploited.
An unauthenticated remote attacker can upload a malicious JSP file to a vulnerable Tomcat instance and execute arbitrary code with server privileges. This critical vulnerability has been actively exploited in the wild.
CISA KEV Yes · 2022-03-254EPSS 0.99988 (verify live)5Exploit Weaponized · public PoC6CVSS 8.1 (CISA)3CISA SSVC Exploitation: active · Automatable: no · Impact: total3
01
Is it exploitable?
— the evidence, ranked above the scoreExploit available
Fully weaponized — public exploit code is cataloged for this vulnerability.We link the existence of the exploit; we do not host or redistribute payloads.
Reported exploitation
55 independent public reports of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2022-03-25).
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.99988 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
CVSS 8.1 (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) · Affected: Apache, Tomcat. Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.CVSS — CISA-assigned via the ADP container (CVE.org), version 3.1; the CNA left no metrics, so CISA's own score is used ahead of NVD.
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-434 Unrestricted File Upload — weakness family: Path traversal / file.CWE assignment from the public NVD record (may be stale); the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
CISA SSVC (triage disposition)
Exploitation: active · Automatable: no · Technical Impact: totalCISA's own stakeholder-specific triage inputs, published in the CVE record (CISA Coordinator role). NOTE: this is CISA's three decision points; the final Act/Attend/Track decision also requires a Mission & Well-being input not published here, so no overall decision is asserted.
Currency of the record
CISA added this to its KEV catalog 1634 days after the CVE record was published.KEV lag = CISA-KEV dateAdded − CVE.org datePublished; a floor on how long the known-exploited flaw sat in the public record before the federal catalog listed it. Severity/weakness here is CNA- or CISA-assigned (current at disclosure), independent of NVD's analysis backlog.
Public exploit available
Public exploit tooling is catalogued for this CVE (a functional/weaponized public exploit). Catalog entries: Metasploit module, nuclei template. We link the catalog page(s) only — no payload or code is hosted or restated here.Link, never host — the catalog page is the source; basicsecurity.net does not redistribute payloads.
02
Who’s exploiting it?
— attribution turns risk into urgencyAttribution not established
No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.
03
Why it matters
— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board1
Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1
Attacker
I craft a request that bypasses file upload restrictions to place a JSP file on the target Tomcat server.
Business
The organization's web server is compromised, creating immediate risk of data theft, service disruption, and lateral movement into internal systems.
2
Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2
Attacker
I request the uploaded JSP file through the web server, triggering execution of embedded malicious code with full server privileges.
Business
Attackers gain persistent code execution capability, enabling installation of backdoors, ransomware deployment, or exfiltration of sensitive data.
3
Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3
Attacker
I use the compromised server as a pivot point to scan and attack other systems on the internal network.
Business
The breach expands beyond the web tier, potentially compromising databases, file servers, and other critical infrastructure.
04
What to do
— defensible action- Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05