Eclipse Ditto: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component
CVE-2026-82958 is a high-severity improper neutralization of special elements in output used by a downstream component vulnerability in Eclipse Ditto from Eclipse Foundation, with a CVSS 4.0 base score of 7.6 out of 10. It can be exploited remotely over the network by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. Affected Eclipse Ditto versions: 1.3.0 through 3.9.6. The record does not name a fixed version, so check the vendor advisory. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.41% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Check which version of Eclipse Ditto you run against the affected versions below, and install the vendor's latest release.
- Read the advisory on github.com for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eclipse Foundation | Eclipse Ditto | 1.3.0 through 3.9.6 | Not stated |
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.
- Attack requirements
- PresentThe target must be in a specific state or configuration for the attack to work.
- Privileges required
- LowA basic user account is enough.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Confidentiality (vulnerable system)
- HighSerious loss of confidentiality on the vulnerable system.
- Integrity (vulnerable system)
- HighSerious loss of integrity on the vulnerable system.
- Availability (vulnerable system)
- NoneNo loss of availability on the vulnerable system.
- Confidentiality (other systems)
- NoneNo loss of confidentiality on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
- Integrity (other systems)
- NoneNo loss of integrity on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
- Availability (other systems)
- NoneNo loss of availability on systems beyond the vulnerable one.
Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X. Scored by CNA (eclipse.org).
Official description
In Eclipse Ditto versions [1.3.0, 3.9.6], the ImplicitThingCreationMessageMapper of the connectivity service builds a CreateThing command by substituting placeholder values (e.g. {{ header:device_id }}) resolved from inbound message headers into a pre-configured JSON "thing" template as raw, un-escaped strings, and then parses the resulting string as JSON. Because the placeholder engine performs no JSON escaping and is unaware of the surrounding JSON string context, a resolved value containing a double-quote character can break out of its string and inject additional JSON structure. When a connection is configured to use this mapper with a template that reflects a header whose value a publishing device can control (for example an MQTT 5 user property, an AMQP 1.0 application property, or a Kafka record header), an attacker able to publish on that connection can inject an inline _policy object. The inline policy overrides the administrator-configured policyId, letting the attacker assign an arbitrary access-control policy to the newly created digital twin — gaining full read/write access to it and potentially revoking the legitimate owner's access, with no administrator interaction. Exploitation requires all of the following: the connection uses the (non-default) ImplicitThingCreation mapper; its template reflects an attacker-controllable header; and, for the policy-override impact, the connection's authorization subjects are permitted to create policies (the default). Deployments that restrict the connection's subjects to thing creation only via the entity-creation configuration are not affected by the policy-override impact.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component
The product constructs all or part of a command, data structure, or record using externally-influenced input from an upstream component, but it does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes special elements that could modify how it is parsed or interpreted when it is sent to a downstream component.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Programming languages and supporting technologies might be chosen which are not subject to these issues.
- Utilize an appropriate mix of allowlist and denylist parsing to filter control-plane syntax from all input.
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: poc, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Other vulnerabilities in Eclipse Ditto
- 9.2 Critical severity
Recent Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component vulnerabilities
- 7.3 High severity
- 7.4 High severity
- 9.9 Critical severity
- 9.9 Critical severity
- 10.0 Critical severity
- 7.3 High severity
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