Vulnerability Monitor

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CVE-2015-3451

The _clone function in XML::LibXML before 2.0119 does not properly set the expand_entities option, which allows remote attackers to conduct XML external entity (XXE) attacks via crafted XML data to the (1) new or (2) load_xml function.

Security Impact Summary

CVE-2015-3451 is a security vulnerability that . Impacting 5 products from xml-libxml_project, from canonical, from debian and 2 others, organizations running these solutions should prioritize assessment and patching.

Historical Context

First disclosed in 2015, this vulnerability was reported during a period defined by widespread IoT adoption challenges, mobile security concerns, and the emergence of advanced persistent threat (APT) techniques. Contemporary mitigation strategies focused on secure development practices and third-party component vetting.

Published

2015-05-12T19:59:21.827

Last Modified

2025-04-12T10:46:40.837

Status

Deferred

Source

[email protected]

Severity

CVSSv2: 5.0 (MEDIUM)

CVSSv2 Vector

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N

Access Vector: NETWORK
Access Complexity: LOW
Authentication: NONE
Confidentiality Impact: PARTIAL
Integrity Impact: NONE
Availability Impact: NONE

Exploitability Score

10.0

Impact Score

2.9

Weaknesses

Type: Primary
CWE-611

Affected Vendors & Products

Type	Vendor	Product	Version/Range	Vulnerable?
Application	xml-libxml_project	xml-libxml	≤ 2.0118	Yes
Operating System	canonical	ubuntu_linux	12.04	Yes
Operating System	canonical	ubuntu_linux	14.04	Yes
Operating System	canonical	ubuntu_linux	14.10	Yes
Operating System	canonical	ubuntu_linux	15.04	Yes
Operating System	debian	debian_linux	7.0	Yes
Operating System	debian	debian_linux	8.0	Yes
Operating System	fedoraproject	fedora	20	Yes
Operating System	fedoraproject	fedora	21	Yes
Operating System	opensuse	opensuse	13.1	Yes
Operating System	opensuse	opensuse	13.2	Yes

References

http://advisories.mageia.org/MGASA-2015-0199.html Third Party Advisory ([email protected])
http://cpansearch.perl.org/src/SHLOMIF/XML-LibXML-2.0119/Changes Release Notes, Third Party Advisory ([email protected])
http://lists.fedoraproject.org/pipermail/package-announce/2015-May/157448.html Third Party Advisory ([email protected])
http://lists.fedoraproject.org/pipermail/package-announce/2015-May/157740.html Third Party Advisory ([email protected])
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-updates/2015-09/msg00006.html Third Party Advisory ([email protected])
http://www.debian.org/security/2015/dsa-3243 Third Party Advisory ([email protected])
http://www.mandriva.com/security/advisories?name=MDVSA-2015:231 Broken Link ([email protected])
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2015/04/25/2 Mailing List, Third Party Advisory ([email protected])
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2015/04/30/1 Mailing List, Third Party Advisory ([email protected])
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/74333 Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry ([email protected])
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-2592-1 Third Party Advisory ([email protected])
https://bitbucket.org/shlomif/perl-xml-libxml/commits/5962fd067580767777e94640b129ae8930a68a30/raw/ Vendor Advisory ([email protected])
http://advisories.mageia.org/MGASA-2015-0199.html Third Party Advisory (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
http://cpansearch.perl.org/src/SHLOMIF/XML-LibXML-2.0119/Changes Release Notes, Third Party Advisory (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
http://lists.fedoraproject.org/pipermail/package-announce/2015-May/157448.html Third Party Advisory (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
http://lists.fedoraproject.org/pipermail/package-announce/2015-May/157740.html Third Party Advisory (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-updates/2015-09/msg00006.html Third Party Advisory (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
http://www.debian.org/security/2015/dsa-3243 Third Party Advisory (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
http://www.mandriva.com/security/advisories?name=MDVSA-2015:231 Broken Link (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2015/04/25/2 Mailing List, Third Party Advisory (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2015/04/30/1 Mailing List, Third Party Advisory (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/74333 Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-2592-1 Third Party Advisory (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)
https://bitbucket.org/shlomif/perl-xml-libxml/commits/5962fd067580767777e94640b129ae8930a68a30/raw/ Vendor Advisory (af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108)

How SecUtils Interprets This CVE

SecUtils normalizes and enriches National Vulnerability Database (NVD) records by standardizing vendor and product identifiers, aggregating vulnerability metadata from both NVD and MITRE sources, and providing structured context for security teams. For xml-libxml_project's affected products, we extract Common Platform Enumeration (CPE) data, Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) classifications, CVSS severity metrics, and reference data to enable rapid vulnerability prioritization and asset correlation. This record contains no exploit code, proof-of-concept instructions, or attack methodologies—only defensive intelligence necessary for patch management, risk assessment, and security operations.