Server-side request forgery and file disclosure in Apache Camel Docling
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- High
- Impact type
- Information disclosure
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · None · None
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 2 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-200.
Summary
Apache Camel from 4.15.0 before 4.18.5 and from 4.19.0 before 4.22.1 has a flaw in the Docling component. The component picks how to treat a String message body from its prefix: a body starting with an http or https URL is fetched as a remote resource, and a body starting with a slash or containing a backslash is read as a local file. A sender able to place text in a message that a route forwards into a docling endpoint can trigger server-side requests or read local files without any opt-in by the deployment.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-04
Description from the CNA
Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF), Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') and Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor vulnerability in Apache Camel Docling component. This issue affects Apache Camel: from 4.15.0 before 4.18.5, from 4.19.0 before 4.22.1. DoclingProducer decided what a String message body meant by inspecting its prefix. A body starting with http:// or https:// was handed to Docling as a remote URL to fetch, a body starting with / or containing a backslash was read from the local filesystem, and anything else was written to a temporary file and converted as document content. The mode was chosen implicitly and no endpoint option allowed a route author to pin the component to a single interpretation, so a route that means convert whatever text arrives in the body silently became a fetcher of remote resources or a reader of local files whenever the text happened to begin with one of those prefixes. The only guard applied to the derived value was a size check, and that check was wrapped in an existence test, so a path that resolved to nothing, or to a pseudo-file reporting a size of zero, passed without being checked at all. Five call sites reached the two sinks: the CLI mode appended the value as the final positional argument of the docling subprocess, and the docling-serve mode passed it either to HttpSource for the backend to fetch or to Files.readAllBytes so that the content could be base64-encoded and uploaded. Because the exchange body is never filtered by a HeaderFilterStrategy, unlike the Camel header namespace, a sender able to place text in a message that a route forwards into a docling endpoint could reach both sinks without any opt-in from the deployment. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 4.23.0, which fixes the issue. If users are on the 4.22.x releases stream, then they are suggested to upgrade to 4.22.1. If users are on the 4.18.x releases stream, then they are suggested to upgrade to 4.18.5. The 4.14.x releases stream and earlier reached end of life before this issue was resolved and will not receive a fix, so deployments on those lines must move to a supported release. For deployments that cannot upgrade immediately, do not route message bodies that originate outside the deployment into a docling endpoint, and pass the document through a typed body such as File, byte[] or InputStream, or through the CamelDoclingInputFilePath header, so that the body is never subject to prefix interpretation.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
Remediation
Apache Camel 4.18.5, 4.22.1 and 4.23.0 fix the issue, so upgrade to the fixed version on your release stream. The sources list no fixed version for Red Hat build of Apache Camel 4 for Quarkus 3 or Red Hat build of Apache Camel for Spring Boot 4. Until you upgrade, do not route message bodies from outside the deployment into a docling endpoint, and pass documents as File, byte[] or InputStream bodies or through the CamelDoclingInputFilePath header.
Written with Claude Haiku 5.5 from the sources below · 2026-11-04
- Fix · CNA Apache Camel (Apache Software Foundation) Fixed in 4.18.5, 4.22.1, 4.23.0
Fixed in the same release
Records fixed by the same vendor advisory or release, as the CNA lists them.
- Release ·
Apache Camel 4.18.5, 4.22.1
39 records Highest priority Priority HIGH 6 HIGH, 9 MEDIUM, 24 LOW
Other records, highest priority first
- TI-2026-76322 Unsafe deserialization in Apache Camel camel-hazelcastPriority HIGH 82
- TI-2026-76339 Path traversal in Apache Camel azure-files componentPriority HIGH 74
- TI-2026-76330 Path traversal in Apache Camel FTP consumer escapes polled directoryPriority HIGH 74
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat build of Apache Camel 4 for Quarkus 3 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat build of Apache Camel for Spring Boot 4 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
Timeline
- 2026-10-19 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-78163
- 2026-10-19 Alias added: GHSA-62ww-q9gh-hmrv
- 2026-10-20 CISA SSVC decision points changed
- 2026-10-20 Priority changed: MEDIUM → LOW
- 2026-11-04 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-11-04 CVSS score added · Red Hat
References
More Apache vulnerabilities
- TI-2025-18529 Apache Tomcat: Potential RCE and/or information disclosure and/or information corruption with partial PUT KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 10.0
- TI-2024-30292 Apache OFBiz: Confused controller-view authorization logic (forced browsing) KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2024-26062 Apache OFBiz: Unauthenticated endpoint could allow execution of screen rendering code KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2024-21190 Apache OFBiz: Path traversal leading to RCE KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2024-18186 Apache HugeGraph-Server: Command execution in gremlin KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2023-25106 Deserialization of untrusted data in Apache ActiveMQ KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 10.0
Sources
- CVE-2026-78163 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-78163 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-62ww-q9gh-hmrv · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-78163 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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