What is the CVSS score of CVE-2025-54988?

CVE-2025-54988 has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 8.4 (High). CVSS vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. EPSS exploitation probability: 0.0%.

Is there a public PoC exploit available for CVE-2025-54988?

Yes, a public proof-of-concept exploit is available for CVE-2025-54988. Prioritise patching immediately. EPSS: 0.0%.

How to fix or mitigate CVE-2025-54988?

Within 30 days: Identify all affected systems running Apache Tika 1.13 and apply vendor patches as part of regular patch cycle. Monitor vendor channels for patch availability.

Tika CVE-2025-54988

HIGH

Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference (CWE-611)

2025-08-20 security@apache.org

Apache Information Disclosure XXE Red Hat Tika

8.4

CVSS 3.1 · NVD

View

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness	CWE CWE-611 OWASP Top 10:2025 A02:2025 - Security Misconfiguration ASVS 5.0 V13 - Configuration XML external entity prevention MITRE ATT&CK 2 techniques across 2 tactics: Initial Access, Collection The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. Sign in to read
Impact	CVSS score of 8.4 (HIGH). Attack characteristics: local attack vector, low complexity, no privileges required, no user interaction not required. EPSS exploitation probability: 0.02%.
Exploit ScenarioDerived	A local attacker with access to the system could read arbitrary files or perform SSRF through XML processing. No authentication is required to exploit this vulnerability.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).

Patch available 0.0% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Mar 28, 2026

Critical XXE in Apache Tika (tika-parser-pdf-module) in Apache Tika 1.13 through and including 3.2.1 on all platforms allows an attacker to carry out XML External Entity injection via a crafted XFA. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.4), this vulnerability is no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.

RemediationAI

No vendor patch is available at time of analysis. Monitor vendor advisories for updates. Disable external entity processing in XML parsers, use JSON instead of XML where possible.

Affected Packages

maven org.apache.tika:tika-parser-pdf-module fix: 3.2.2

maven org.apache.tika:tika-parsers fix: 2.0.0-ALPHA

Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)

Affects your stack

Affects 2 packages in maven

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

This vulnerability is classified as XML External Entity (XXE) (CWE-611), which allows attackers to read arbitrary files or perform SSRF through XML processing. Critical XXE in Apache Tika (tika-parser-pdf-module) in Apache Tika 1.13 through and including 3.2.1 on all platforms allows an attacker to carry out XML External Entity injection via a crafted XFA file inside of a PDF. An attacker may be able to read sensitive data or trigger malicious requests to internal resources or third-party servers. Note that the tika-parser-pdf-module is used as a dependency in several Tika packages including at least: tika-parsers-standard-modules, tika-parsers-standard-package, tika-app, tika-grpc and tika-server-standard. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 3.2.2, which fixes this issue. Affected products include: Apache Tika. Version information: version 3.2.2.

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Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY 8.4 HIGH

AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Red Hat 9.4 CRITICAL

Primary rating from NVD.

CVSS VectorNVD

Attack Vector

Local

Attack Complexity

Low

Privileges Required

None

User Interaction

None

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

High

Availability

High

Lifecycle Timeline

Patch released

Mar 31, 2026 - 21:13 nvd

Patch available

CVE Published

Aug 20, 2025 - 20:15 nvd

HIGH 8.4

DescriptionCVE.org

Critical XXE in Apache Tika (tika-parser-pdf-module) in Apache Tika 1.13 through and including 3.2.1 on all platforms allows an attacker to carry out XML External Entity injection via a crafted XFA file inside of a PDF. An attacker may be able to read sensitive data or trigger malicious requests to internal resources or third-party servers. Note that the tika-parser-pdf-module is used as a dependency in several Tika packages including at least: tika-parsers-standard-modules, tika-parsers-standard-package, tika-app, tika-grpc and tika-server-standard.

Users are recommended to upgrade to version 3.2.2, which fixes this issue.

Executive ViewAI

Why It Matters

Organizations using Apache Tika 1.13 face notable risk from CVE-2025-54988, a XML external entity vulnerability rated CVSS 8.4. Successful exploitation could significantly impact the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of affected systems. Organizations should apply vendor updates when available and consider compensating controls in the interim.

Business Impact: High

Compensating Controls

Apply vendor patch. If immediate patching is not feasible: (1) Implement network-level access controls to limit exposure; (2) Enable enhanced monitoring and alerting; (3) Apply principle of least privilege.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score

0.0%

Top 95% exploitable

Exploit

POC

Public exploit code exists

Data Quality

4 sources

Confidence: Medium

NVD

CVE.org

EPSS POC (2) Vendor

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue

Severity HIGH

CISA KEV No

Public POC Yes

EPSS 0.0%

Patch available Yes

Active threat No

Deciding rule

HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)

What every action level means

Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.

Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.

This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.

Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived

Scheduled

Exploitation· derived

Poc

System Exposure· derived

Small

Automatable· derived

Human Impact

High

Priority Score

Low Medium High Critical

KEV: 0

EPSS: 0

CVSS: +42

PoC: +20

Weaponized: 0

Threat intel: 0

Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

XML External Entity Injection HIGH

XML External Entity (XXE) attacks exploit XML parsers that process Document Type Definitions (DTDs) without proper restrictions.

Information Disclosure MEDIUM

Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.