Overview
In this blog post, we will delve into the details of a critical vulnerability CVE-2025-49537, affecting the popular web application development platform, ColdFusion. This security flaw has a CVSS Severity Score of 7.9, making it a high-risk vulnerability that deserves immediate attention. Affected versions of ColdFusion include 2025.2, 2023.14, 2021.20 and earlier. The vulnerability could lead to improper neutralization of special elements used in an OS command (OS Command Injection) potentially resulting in arbitrary code execution by a high-privileged attacker. It’s worth noting that while exploitation requires user interaction, the impact could be substantial, including system compromise or data leakage.
Vulnerability Summary
CVE ID: CVE-2025-49537
Severity: High (7.9)
Attack Vector: OS Command Injection
Privileges Required: High
User Interaction: Required
Impact: Potential system compromise or data leakage
Affected Products
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Product | Affected Versions
ColdFusion | 2025.2
ColdFusion | 2023.14
ColdFusion | 2021.20 and earlier
How the Exploit Works
The vulnerability stems from the improper neutralization of special elements used in an OS command within ColdFusion. An attacker with high privileges can inject malicious commands into the system via the application. These commands are executed at the operating system level, providing the attacker with the potential to execute arbitrary code, alter system configurations, or access sensitive data.
Conceptual Example Code
Consider the conceptual example below that demonstrates how a malicious request might exploit this vulnerability:
POST /vulnerable/endpoint HTTP/1.1
Host: target.example.com
Content-Type: application/json
{ "payload": "; rm -rf / --no-preserve-root;" }In this example, the attacker sends a HTTP POST request to a vulnerable endpoint. The payload is a command injection that, if executed by the server, would delete all files on the system. This is merely illustrative and in practice, the injected commands could take many other forms, potentially much more subtle and damaging.
Mitigation
To mitigate this vulnerability, it is recommended to apply the vendor patch as soon as it becomes available. In the meantime, or in cases where patching is not immediately feasible, using a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) can provide temporary mitigation by blocking or alerting on suspicious activity.