Spring Boot: Improper Certificate Validation
CVE-2026-40971 is a critical-severity improper certificate validation vulnerability in Spring Boot from Spring, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.1 out of 10. It can be exploited remotely over the network by an unauthenticated attacker, without any action from a user. The record lists versions 4.0.6, 3.5.14 as the first without the flaw, so updating Spring Boot to one of those releases or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.16% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
Critical severity: a successful attack would have severe impact.
What to do
- Update Spring Boot to 4.0.6 or 3.5.14, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
- Read the advisory on spring.io for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
- Until you can update, restrict network access to the affected service so it is not reachable from untrusted networks.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | Spring Boot | 4.0.0 up to, but not including, 4.0.6; 3.5.0 up to, but not including, 3.5.14 | 4.0.6, 3.5.14 |
Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- NetworkCan be exploited remotely over a network, including the internet.
- Attack complexity
- LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
- Privileges required
- NoneNo account or login is needed.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- HighData or code can be modified at will.
- Availability
- NoneAvailability is not affected.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N. Scored by NVD.
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | 5.0 | Medium | CNA (vmware.com) |
| CVSS 3.1 | 9.1 | Critical | NVD |
Official description
When configured to use an SSL bundle, Spring Boot's RabbitMQ auto-configuration does not perform hostname verification when connecting to the RabbitMQ broker. Affected: Spring Boot 4.0.0–4.0.5 (fix 4.0.6), 3.5.0–3.5.13 (fix 3.5.14) per vendor advisory.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Improper Certificate Validation
The product does not validate, or incorrectly validates, a certificate.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Certificates should be carefully managed and checked to assure that data are encrypted with the intended owner's public key.
- If certificate pinning is being used, ensure that all relevant properties of the certificate are fully validated before the certificate is pinned, including the hostname.
More Improper Certificate Validation vulnerabilities (CWE-295)
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: partial).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Advisories
Other vulnerabilities in Spring Boot
- 9.1 Critical severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 7.0 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 8.1 High severity
Recent Improper Certificate Validation vulnerabilities
- 8.8 High severity
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 8.8 High severity
- 8.1 High severity
- 9.1 Critical severity
- 7.5 High severity
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