Netty before 4.1.42.Final mishandles whitespace before the colon in HTTP headers (such as…
Priority MEDIUM 50CWE-444Published · Updated
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · High · None
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 15 fixed, 3 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · NVD. Fix status from CNA, GitHub and Red Hat.
Summary
Netty before 4.1.42.Final mishandles whitespace before the colon in HTTP headers (such as a "Transfer-Encoding : chunked" line), which leads to HTTP request smuggling.
Why it matters now
Exploitation None reported CISA SSVC · not in CISA KEV
EPSS 0.08645 95th percentileScored 2026-11-07
Public exploit Yes 1 exploit referenceTagged by NVD
Fix Partial io.netty:netty-all (Maven): 4.1.42.FinalRed Hat: 15 advisoriesRed Hat: 15 fixed, 3 without a fix
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- Yes
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | all versions | — | No fix listed | CNA |
| — | io.netty:netty-all (Maven) | 4.0.0.Beta1 to before 4.1.42.Final | 4.1.42.Final | Patch available | GHSA-p979-4mfw-53vg |
| — | org.jboss.netty:netty (Maven) | up to 3.2.9.Final | — | No fix listed | GHSA-p979-4mfw-53vg |
| — | io.netty:netty (Maven) | 3.3.0.Final – 4.0.0.Alpha8 | — | No fix listed | GHSA-p979-4mfw-53vg |
- — Vendor— Affected all versions Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
- io.netty:netty-all (Maven) Vendor— Affected 4.0.0.Beta1 to before 4.1.42.Final Fixed in 4.1.42.Final Patch available GHSA-p979-4mfw-53vg
- org.jboss.netty:netty (Maven) Vendor— Affected up to 3.2.9.Final Fixed in — No fix listed GHSA-p979-4mfw-53vg
- io.netty:netty (Maven) Vendor— Affected 3.3.0.Final – 4.0.0.Alpha8 Fixed in — No fix listed GHSA-p979-4mfw-53vg
CPE configurations NVD · 11
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:netty:netty:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | before 4.1.42 | Vulnerable | netty |
| cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 8.0 | Vulnerable | Debian |
| cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 9.0 | Vulnerable | Debian |
| cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 10.0 | Vulnerable | Debian |
| cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:18.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:* | 18.04 | Vulnerable | Canonical |
| cpe:2.3:a:redhat:jboss_enterprise_application_platform:7.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.2 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
| cpe:2.3:a:redhat:jboss_enterprise_application_platform:7.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.3 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
| cpe:2.3:a:redhat:jboss_enterprise_application_platform:7.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.4 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
| cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 6.0 | Running on | Red Hat |
| cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.0 | Running on | Red Hat |
- cpe:2.3:a:netty:netty:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions before 4.1.42 Vulnerable ·netty
- cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 8.0 Vulnerable ·Debian
- cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 9.0 Vulnerable ·Debian
- cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 10.0 Vulnerable ·Debian
- cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:18.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:* Versions 18.04 Vulnerable ·Canonical
- cpe:2.3:a:redhat:jboss_enterprise_application_platform:7.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.2 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
- cpe:2.3:a:redhat:jboss_enterprise_application_platform:7.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.3 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
- cpe:2.3:a:redhat:jboss_enterprise_application_platform:7.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.4 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
- cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 6.0 Running on ·Red Hat
- cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.0 Running on ·Red Hat
Remediation
- Fix · GHSA-p979-4mfw-53vg io.netty:netty-all (Maven) Fixed in 4.1.42.Final Advisory →
Red Hat 15 advisories
- RHSA-2024:5856 Released 2024-08-26 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7.1.7 on RHEL 7 security update
- Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7.1 EUS for RHEL 7 Server eap7-apache-commons-beanutils-1.9.4-1.redhat_00002.1.ep7.el7, eap7-infinispan-8.2.11-1.SP2_redhat_00001.1.ep7.el7, eap7-infinispan-cachestore-jdbc-8.2.11-1.SP2_redhat_00001.1.ep7.el7 +12
- RHSA-2021:3140 Released 2021-08-11 · Red Hat rating ModerateRed Hat Fuse 7.9.0 release and security update
- Red Hat Fuse 7.9
- RHSA-2020:3197 Released 2020-07-29 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Process Automation Manager 7.8.0 Security Update
- Red Hat Process Automation 7
Show 12 more Red Hat advisories
- RHSA-2020:3196 Released 2020-07-29 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Decision Manager 7.8.0 Security Update
- Red Hat Decision Manager 7
- RHSA-2020:2333 Released 2020-05-28 · Red Hat rating ImportantEAP Continuous Delivery Technical Preview Release 19 security update
- EAP-CD 19 Tech Preview
- RHSA-2020:2321 Released 2020-05-26 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Data Grid 7.3.6 security update
- Red Hat Data Grid 7.3.6
- RHSA-2020:1445 Released 2020-04-14 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat AMQ Broker 7.4.3 release and security update
- Red Hat AMQ 7.4.3
- RHSA-2020:0922 Released 2020-03-23 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat AMQ Broker 7.6 release and security update
- Red Hat AMQ
- RHSA-2020:0445 Released 2020-02-06 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Single Sign-On 7.3.6 security update
- Red Hat Single Sign-On 7.3
- RHSA-2020:0160 Released 2020-01-21 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7.2.6 on RHEL 7 security update
- Red Hat JBoss EAP 7.2 for RHEL 7 Server eap7-apache-cxf-3.2.11-1.redhat_00001.1.el7eap, eap7-apache-cxf-rt-3.2.11-1.redhat_00001.1.el7eap, eap7-apache-cxf-services-3.2.11-1.redhat_00001.1.el7eap +47
- RHSA-2020:0161 Released 2020-01-21 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7.2.6 on RHEL 8 security update
- Red Hat JBoss EAP 7.2 for RHEL 8 eap7-apache-cxf-3.2.11-1.redhat_00001.1.el8eap, eap7-apache-cxf-rt-3.2.11-1.redhat_00001.1.el8eap, eap7-apache-cxf-services-3.2.11-1.redhat_00001.1.el8eap +47
- RHSA-2020:0159 Released 2020-01-21 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7.2.6 on RHEL 6 security update
- Red Hat JBoss EAP 7.2 for RHEL 6 Server eap7-apache-cxf-3.2.11-1.redhat_00001.1.el6eap, eap7-apache-cxf-rt-3.2.11-1.redhat_00001.1.el6eap, eap7-apache-cxf-services-3.2.11-1.redhat_00001.1.el6eap +47
- RHSA-2020:0164 Released 2020-01-21 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7.2.6 security update
- Red Hat JBoss EAP 7.2
- RHSA-2019:3901 Released 2019-11-18 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat OpenShift Application Runtimes Vert.x 3.8.3 security update
- Red Hat Openshift Application Runtimes Vert.x 3.8.3
- RHSA-2019:3892 Released 2019-11-14 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat Fuse 7.5.0 security update
- Red Hat Fuse 7.5.0
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Important. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat JBoss Fuse 6 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 3.11 | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4 | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| EAP-CD 19 Tech Preview | Fixed | RHSA-2020:2333 |
| Red Hat AMQ | Fixed | RHSA-2020:0922 |
| Red Hat AMQ 7.4.3 | Fixed | RHSA-2020:1445 |
| Red Hat Data Grid 7.3.6 | Fixed | RHSA-2020:2321 |
| Red Hat Decision Manager 7 | Fixed | RHSA-2020:3196 |
| Red Hat Fuse 7.5.0 | Fixed | RHSA-2019:3892 |
| Red Hat Fuse 7.9 | Fixed | RHSA-2021:3140 |
| Red Hat JBoss EAP 7.2 | Fixed | RHSA-2020:0164 |
| Red Hat JBoss EAP 7.2 for RHEL 6 Server | Fixed | RHSA-2020:0159 |
| Red Hat JBoss EAP 7.2 for RHEL 7 Server | Fixed | RHSA-2020:0160 |
| Red Hat JBoss EAP 7.2 for RHEL 8 | Fixed | RHSA-2020:0161 |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7.1 EUS for RHEL 7 Server | Fixed | RHSA-2024:5856 |
| Red Hat Openshift Application Runtimes Vert.x 3.8.3 | Fixed | RHSA-2019:3901 |
| Red Hat Process Automation 7 | Fixed | RHSA-2020:3197 |
| Red Hat Single Sign-On 7.3 | Fixed | RHSA-2020:0445 |
Not affected: 3 products
- A-MQ Clients 2
- Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 7.1 EUS for RHEL 7 Server
- Red Hat Satellite 6
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2019-16869
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-p979-4mfw-53vg
- 2026-10-08 CISA SSVC decision points changed
- 2026-10-16 EPSS moved to the 95th–99th percentile
References
Advisory 14
- [debian-lts-announce] 20190930 [SECURITY] [DLA 1941-1] netty security update
- RHSA-2019:3892
- RHSA-2019:3901
- DSA-4597
- 20200105 [SECURITY] [DSA 4597-1] netty security update
- RHSA-2020:0164
- RHSA-2020:0159
- RHSA-2020:0160
- RHSA-2020:0161
- RHSA-2020:0445
- [debian-lts-announce] 20200219 [SECURITY] [DLA 2110-1] netty-3.9 security update
- [debian-lts-announce] 20200904 [SECURITY] [DLA 2365-1] netty-3.9 security update
- USN-4532-1
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-16869
Other 68
- [zookeeper-dev] 20190930 Re: [VOTE] Apache ZooKeeper release 3.5.6 candidate 2
- [zookeeper-issues] 20190930 [jira] [Updated] (ZOOKEEPER-3563) dependency check failing on 3.4 and 3.5 branches - netty with CVE-2019-16869
- [zookeeper-dev] 20190930 [jira] [Created] (ZOOKEEPER-3563) dependency check failing on 3.4 and 3.5 branches - netty-3.10.6.Final.jar: CVE-2019-16869
- [zookeeper-issues] 20190930 [jira] [Updated] (ZOOKEEPER-3563) dependency check failing on 3.4 and 3.5 branches - CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [zookeeper-issues] 20190930 [jira] [Created] (ZOOKEEPER-3563) dependency check failing on 3.4 and 3.5 branches - netty-3.10.6.Final.jar: CVE-2019-16869
- [zookeeper-issues] 20190930 [jira] [Commented] (ZOOKEEPER-3563) dependency check failing on 3.4 and 3.5 branches - CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [zookeeper-dev] 20191001 Re: [VOTE] Apache ZooKeeper release 3.5.6 candidate 2
- [zookeeper-issues] 20191001 [jira] [Commented] (ZOOKEEPER-3563) dependency check failing on 3.4 and 3.5 branches - CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [zookeeper-dev] 20191002 Re: [VOTE] Apache ZooKeeper release 3.5.6 candidate 2
- [zookeeper-commits] 20191003 [zookeeper] branch branch-3.5 updated: ZOOKEEPER-3563: Update Netty to fix CVE-2019-16869
- [zookeeper-commits] 20191003 [zookeeper] branch master updated: ZOOKEEPER-3563: Update Netty to address CVE-2019-16869
- [zookeeper-commits] 20191003 [zookeeper] branch branch-3.5.6 updated: ZOOKEEPER-3563: Update Netty to fix CVE-2019-16869
- [zookeeper-issues] 20191003 [jira] [Commented] (ZOOKEEPER-3563) dependency check failing on 3.4 and 3.5 branches - CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [zookeeper-issues] 20191008 [jira] [Resolved] (ZOOKEEPER-3563) dependency check failing on 3.4 and 3.5 branches - CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [zookeeper-issues] 20191008 [jira] [Commented] (ZOOKEEPER-3563) dependency check failing on 3.4 and 3.5 branches - CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [drill-dev] 20191017 Dependencies used by Drill contain known vulnerabilities
- [drill-dev] 20191021 [jira] [Created] (DRILL-7416) Updates required to dependencies to resolve potential security vulnerabilities
- [drill-issues] 20191021 [jira] [Created] (DRILL-7416) Updates required to dependencies to resolve potential security vulnerabilities
- [tinkerpop-commits] 20191022 [tinkerpop] branch tp34 updated: Bump to Netty 4.1.42 fixes CVE-2019-16869 - CTR
- [cassandra-commits] 20191113 [jira] [Created] (CASSANDRA-15417) CVE-2019-16869(Netty is vulnerable to HTTP Request Smuggling) of severity 7.5
- [cassandra-commits] 20191113 [jira] [Created] (CASSANDRA-15418) CVE-2019-16869(Netty is vulnerable to HTTP Request Smuggling) of severity 7.5 for Cassendra 2.2.5
- [druid-commits] 20191115 [GitHub] [incubator-druid] ccaominh opened a new pull request #8878: Address security vulnerabilities
- [olingo-dev] 20191206 [jira] [Updated] (OLINGO-1414) Dependency check fails on 4.7.0 : CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [olingo-dev] 20191206 [jira] [Created] (OLINGO-1414) Dependency check fails on 4.7.0 : CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [olingo-dev] 20191206 [jira] [Commented] (OLINGO-1414) Dependency check fails on 4.7.0 : CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [olingo-dev] 20191206 [jira] [Assigned] (OLINGO-1414) Dependency check fails on 4.7.0 : CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [olingo-dev] 20191206 [jira] [Resolved] (OLINGO-1414) Dependency check fails on 4.7.0 : CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [olingo-dev] 20191209 [jira] [Commented] (OLINGO-1414) Dependency check fails on 4.7.0 : CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [spark-issues] 20191219 [jira] [Updated] (SPARK-30308) Update Netty and Netty-all to address CVE-2019-16869
- [spark-issues] 20191219 [jira] [Created] (SPARK-30308) Update Netty and Netty-all to address CVE-2019-16869
- [spark-issues] 20191219 [jira] [Commented] (SPARK-30308) Update Netty and Netty-all to address CVE-2019-16869
- [spark-issues] 20191220 [jira] [Resolved] (SPARK-30308) Update Netty and Netty-all to address CVE-2019-16869
- [spark-issues] 20191220 [jira] [Issue Comment Deleted] (SPARK-30308) Update Netty and Netty-all to address CVE-2019-16869
- [spark-issues] 20191220 [jira] [Comment Edited] (SPARK-30308) Update Netty and Netty-all to address CVE-2019-16869
- [spark-issues] 20191220 [jira] [Commented] (SPARK-30308) Update Netty and Netty-all to address CVE-2019-16869
- [spark-issues] 20191220 [jira] [Reopened] (SPARK-30308) Update Netty and Netty-all to address CVE-2019-16869
- [olingo-dev] 20191227 [jira] [Commented] (OLINGO-1414) Dependency check fails on 4.7.0 : CVE-2019-16869 on Netty
- [druid-commits] 20200131 [GitHub] [druid] ccaominh commented on a change in pull request #9300: Fix / suppress netty CVEs CVE-2019-20445 and CVE-2019-20444
- [cassandra-commits] 20200218 [jira] [Created] (CASSANDRA-15590) Upgrade io.netty_netty-all dependency to fix security vulnerabilities
- [hadoop-common-issues] 20200219 [jira] [Updated] (HADOOP-16871) Upgrade Netty version to 4.1.45.Final to handle CVE-2019-20444,
- [hadoop-common-issues] 20200219 [jira] [Updated] (HADOOP-16871) Upgrade Netty version to 4.1.45.Final to handle CVE-2019-20444,CVE-2019-16869
- [hadoop-common-issues] 20200219 [jira] [Assigned] (HADOOP-16871) Upgrade Netty version to 4.1.45.Final to handle CVE-2019-20444,CVE-2019-16869
- [hadoop-common-issues] 20200224 [jira] [Commented] (HADOOP-16871) Upgrade Netty version to 4.1.45.Final to handle CVE-2019-20444,CVE-2019-16869
- [hadoop-common-issues] 20200225 [jira] [Commented] (HADOOP-16871) Upgrade Netty version to 4.1.45.Final to handle CVE-2019-20444,CVE-2019-16869
- [hadoop-common-issues] 20200309 [jira] [Updated] (HADOOP-16871) Upgrade Netty version to 4.1.45.Final to handle CVE-2019-20444,CVE-2019-16869
- [hadoop-common-issues] 20200309 [jira] [Commented] (HADOOP-16871) Upgrade Netty version to 4.1.45.Final to handle CVE-2019-20444,CVE-2019-16869
- [hadoop-common-commits] 20200309 [hadoop] branch trunk updated: HADOOP-16871. Upgrade Netty version to 4.1.45.Final to handle CVE-2019-20444, CVE-2019-16869
- [hadoop-common-commits] 20200309 [hadoop] branch branch-3.2 updated: HADOOP-16871. Upgrade Netty version to 4.1.45.Final to handle CVE-2019-20444, CVE-2019-16869
- [hadoop-common-commits] 20200309 [hadoop] branch branch-3.1 updated: HADOOP-16871. Upgrade Netty version to 4.1.45.Final to handle CVE-2019-20444, CVE-2019-16869
- [hadoop-common-issues] 20200310 [jira] [Commented] (HADOOP-16871) Upgrade Netty version to 4.1.45.Final to handle CVE-2019-20444,CVE-2019-16869
- [cassandra-commits] 20200604 [jira] [Created] (CASSANDRA-15856) Security vulnerabilities with dependency jars of Cassandra 3.11.6
- [flink-issues] 20200910 [jira] [Created] (FLINK-19195) question on security vulnerabilities in flink
- [flink-dev] 20200910 [jira] [Created] (FLINK-19195) question on security vulnerabilities in flink
- [camel-commits] 20201120 [camel] branch camel-2.25.x updated: Updating Netty to 4.1.48.Final to fix some CVEs (e.g. CVE-2019-16869, CVE-2019-20444)
- [pulsar-commits] 20201215 [GitHub] [pulsar] yanshuchong opened a new issue #8967: CVSS issue list
- [rocketmq-dev] 20201224 [GitHub] [rocketmq] crazywen opened a new pull request #2517: fix CVE-2019-16869, CVE-2018-8020
- [rocketmq-dev] 20201224 [GitHub] [rocketmq] coveralls commented on pull request #2517: fix CVE-2019-16869, CVE-2018-8020
- [rocketmq-dev] 20201224 [GitHub] [rocketmq] codecov-io commented on pull request #2517: fix CVE-2019-16869, CVE-2018-8020
- [pulsar-commits] 20210120 [GitHub] [pulsar] fmiguelez opened a new issue #9249: Upgrade Netty dependency in broker to solve vulnerabilities: CVE-2019-16869, CVE-2020-11612, CVE-2019-20445, CVE-2019-20444
- [pulsar-commits] 20210121 [GitHub] [pulsar] hpvd commented on issue #9249: Upgrade Netty dependency in broker to solve vulnerabilities: CVE-2019-16869, CVE-2020-11612, CVE-2019-20445, CVE-2019-20444
- [pulsar-commits] 20210122 [GitHub] [pulsar] hpvd commented on issue #9249: Upgrade Netty dependency in broker to solve vulnerabilities: CVE-2019-16869, CVE-2020-11612, CVE-2019-20445, CVE-2019-20444
- [cassandra-commits] 20210526 [jira] [Created] (CASSANDRA-16699) Security vulnerability CVE-2020-7238 for Netty
- [cassandra-commits] 20210526 [jira] [Updated] (CASSANDRA-16699) Security vulnerability CVE-2020-7238 for Netty
- [cassandra-commits] 20210924 [jira] [Commented] (CASSANDRA-15417) CVE-2019-16869(Netty is vulnerable to HTTP Request Smuggling) of severity 7.5
- [cassandra-commits] 20210924 [jira] [Updated] (CASSANDRA-15417) CVE-2019-16869(Netty is vulnerable to HTTP Request Smuggling) of severity 7.5
- https://github.com/poc-effectiveness/PoCAdaptation/tree/main/Adapted/CVE-2019-16869/5.0.0.Alpha1/exploit
- https://usn.ubuntu.com/4532-1
- https://github.com/netty/netty
Sources
- CVE-2019-16869 · CVE Program
- CVE-2019-16869 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-p979-4mfw-53vg · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2019-16869 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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