Vulnerabilities

GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit geospatial data. Prior to version 2.25.0, a reflected cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability exists in the WMS GetFeatureInfo HTML output format that enables a remote attacker to execute arbitrary JavaScript code in a victim's browser through specially crafted SLD_BODY parameters. This issue has been patched in version 2.25.0.

GeoServer, an open source server for sharing and editing geospatial data, is vulnerable to an XML External Entity (XXE) injection flaw (CWE-611) tracked as CVE-2025-58360. The flaw is triggered when an unauthenticated XML request sent to the /geoserver/wms endpoint with operation GetMap is not sufficiently sanitized or restricted, allowing an attacker to define external entities in the request and have the server resolve them, which can lead to disclosure of local files, SSRF to internal services, and potentially further compromise. It carries a CVSS 3.1 score of 9.8 (critical) with high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability, and related reporting describes unauthenticated RCE chains affecting government geoportal backends in this software ecosystem. Any organization running GeoServer 2.26.0 up to but not including 2.26.2, or any version before 2.25.6, is affected. Exploitation is confirmed in the wild: CISA added the flaw to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2025-12-11, and EPSS assigns a 64.9% probability of exploitation within 30 days (99th percentile).

Do: Upgrade immediately to GeoServer 2.25.6, 2.26.3, or 2.27.0, which contain the fix. If patching is delayed, restrict or firewall access to the /geoserver/wms endpoint (particularly GetMap requests) and limit the server's ability to fetch external resources; federal agencies must follow BOD 22-01 guidance per the KEV listing. Review WMS access logs for suspicious XML entity usage and outbound connections or file-read activity from the GeoServer host as indicators of exploitation.

OSGeo GeoServer ships the GeoTools library, which evaluates feature property names directly as XPath expressions without proper neutralization (CWE-95), so attacker-supplied input is executed as code rather than treated as data. A remote, unauthenticated attacker triggers the flaw by sending specially crafted requests to a GeoServer service, causing the injected expression to be evaluated in the server's context. Successful exploitation results in remote code execution on the host running GeoServer, giving the attacker control over the mapping server and any data or credentials it can reach. Any organization running GeoServer is affected, and the underlying GeoTools flaw also extends to dependent applications such as GeoNetwork, which shipped its own fix for an unauthenticated RCE chain affecting government geoportal backends. The flaw is being actively exploited: it was added to CISA KEV on 2024-07-15, and EPSS assigns a 99.8% probability of exploitation within 30 days.

Do: Upgrade GeoServer to the fixed releases identified in the OSGeo advisory (2.23.6, 2.24.4 or 2.25.2, or later); where upgrading is not immediately possible, restrict access to GeoServer's public endpoints per vendor mitigations or discontinue use of the product per the KEV required action. Organizations running GeoNetwork or other GeoTools-based applications should apply those vendors' fixes as well. Given active exploitation, hunt for signs of compromise such as unexpected child processes spawned by the GeoServer Java process, new files or services on the host, and unusual map/feature service request patterns.

GeoServer is an open source server that allows users to share and edit geospatial data. Prior to versions 2.23.5 and 2.24.3, if GeoServer is deployed in the Windows operating system using an Apache Tomcat web application server, it is possible to bypass existing input validation in the GeoWebCache ByteStreamController class and read arbitrary classpath resources with specific file name extensions. If GeoServer is also deployed as a web archive using the data directory embedded in the `geoserver.war` file (rather than an external data directory), it will likely be possible to read specific resources to gain administrator privileges. However, it is very unlikely that production environments will be using the embedded data directory since, depending on how GeoServer is deployed, it will be erased and re-installed (which would also reset to the default password) either every time the server restarts or every time a new GeoServer WAR is installed and is therefore difficult to maintain. An external data directory will always be used if GeoServer is running in standalone mode (via an installer or a binary). Versions 2.23.5 and 2.24.3 contain a patch for the issue. Some workarounds are available. One may change from a Windows environment to a Linux environment; or change from Apache Tomcat to Jetty application server. One may also disable anonymous access to the embeded GeoWebCache administration and status pages.

GeoServer is an open source software server written in Java that allows users to share and edit geospatial data. An arbitrary file upload vulnerability exists in versions prior to 2.23.4 and 2.24.1 that enables an authenticated administrator with permissions to modify coverage stores through the REST Coverage Store API to upload arbitrary file contents to arbitrary file locations which can lead to remote code execution. Coverage stores that are configured using relative paths use a GeoServer Resource implementation that has validation to prevent path traversal but coverage stores that are configured using absolute paths use a different Resource implementation that does not prevent path traversal. This vulnerability can lead to executing arbitrary code. An administrator with limited privileges could also potentially exploit this to overwrite GeoServer security files and obtain full administrator privileges. Versions 2.23.4 and 2.24.1 contain a fix for this issue.

A vulnerability was found in GeoServer GeoWebCache up to 1.15.1. It has been declared as problematic. This vulnerability affects unknown code of the file /geoserver/gwc/rest.html. The manipulation leads to direct request. The attack can be initiated remotely. The exploit has been disclosed to the public and may be used. The identifier of this vulnerability is VDB-243592.

GeoServer 2, in some configurations, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via java.lang.Runtime.getRuntime().exec in wps:LiteralData within a wps:Execute request, as exploited in the wild in June 2023. NOTE: the vendor states that they are unable to reproduce this in any version.

GeoWebCache is a tile caching server implemented in Java. The GeoWebCache disk quota mechanism can perform an unchecked JNDI lookup, which in turn can be used to perform class deserialization and result in arbitrary code execution. While in GeoWebCache the JNDI strings are provided via local configuration file, in GeoServer a user interface is provided to perform the same, that can be accessed remotely, and requires admin-level login to be used. These lookup are unrestricted in scope and can lead to code execution. The lookups are going to be restricted in GeoWebCache 1.21.0, 1.20.2, 1.19.3.