CVE-2025-8752: Spring-shiro-training RCE Vulnerability

CVE-2025-8752 Overview

A command injection vulnerability has been identified in wangzhixuan's spring-shiro-training project, a Java-based training application for Apache Shiro security framework integration with Spring. The vulnerability exists in the /role/add endpoint and allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying system without authentication. This flaw affects all versions up to commit 94812c1fd8f7fe796c931f4984ff1aa0671ab562.

Critical Impact

Remote attackers can exploit this command injection vulnerability to execute arbitrary system commands, potentially leading to complete system compromise, data theft, or lateral movement within the network.

Affected Products

• xuanshao spring-shiro-training (all versions up to commit 94812c1fd8f7fe796c931f4984ff1aa0671ab562)

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-08-09 - CVE-2025-8752 published to NVD
• 2025-09-16 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-8752

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified as a command injection flaw (CWE-77) with broader injection characteristics (CWE-74). The vulnerable endpoint /role/add fails to properly sanitize user-supplied input before passing it to system command execution functions. When processing role creation requests, the application constructs system commands using untrusted user input without adequate validation or encoding, allowing attackers to inject malicious command sequences.

The attack requires no authentication or user interaction, making it trivially exploitable from the network. Successful exploitation enables attackers to execute arbitrary commands with the same privileges as the web application process, potentially leading to full system compromise.

Root Cause

The root cause stems from improper input validation in the role management functionality. The /role/add endpoint accepts user input that is directly concatenated into command strings without sanitization, escaping, or parameterization. This allows command metacharacters and shell operators to be interpreted by the underlying operating system, resulting in command injection.

Attack Vector

The vulnerability is exploited via network-based HTTP requests to the /role/add endpoint. An attacker can craft malicious payloads containing shell metacharacters (such as ;, |, &&, or backticks) within role parameters. When the application processes these requests, the injected commands are executed on the server.

The attack can be initiated remotely without any prior authentication. The exploit has been publicly disclosed, increasing the risk of opportunistic attacks against exposed instances. For technical details and proof-of-concept information, refer to the Gitee Issue Report.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-8752

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual HTTP POST requests to /role/add containing shell metacharacters (;, |, &&, `, $())
• Unexpected process spawning from the Java/Tomcat process such as shells (/bin/sh, /bin/bash, cmd.exe)
• Network connections initiated by the web application to external hosts
• Suspicious file system modifications or new files created in web application directories

Detection Strategies

• Deploy web application firewall (WAF) rules to detect and block command injection patterns in requests to /role/add
• Implement application-level logging for all role management operations and review for anomalous input patterns
• Monitor process creation events from Java application servers for unexpected child processes
• Use runtime application self-protection (RASP) solutions to detect command execution attempts

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable detailed access logging on web servers to capture full request bodies for forensic analysis
• Configure SIEM alerts for requests containing common command injection payloads targeting the vulnerable endpoint
• Monitor outbound network connections from application servers for signs of reverse shell connections or data exfiltration
• Implement file integrity monitoring on application directories to detect unauthorized modifications

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-8752

Immediate Actions Required

• Restrict network access to the spring-shiro-training application to trusted networks only
• Implement WAF rules to block requests containing command injection patterns to the /role/add endpoint
• Review application logs for evidence of exploitation attempts
• Consider temporarily disabling the vulnerable endpoint if the role management functionality is not critical

Patch Information

The spring-shiro-training project uses continuous delivery with rolling releases, so no specific version numbers are available for patched releases. Monitor the project repository on Gitee for updates addressing this vulnerability. Users should update to the latest commit after a fix is merged.

Additional technical details are available through VulDB.

Workarounds

• Place the application behind a reverse proxy or WAF configured to sanitize or block malicious input patterns
• Implement network segmentation to limit the blast radius of potential exploitation
• Run the application with minimal system privileges to reduce the impact of command execution
• Apply input validation at the application level using allowlist-based filtering for role parameters

# Example: WAF rule to block command injection in role endpoint
# For ModSecurity/OWASP CRS
SecRule REQUEST_URI "@contains /role/add" \
    "id:100001,phase:2,deny,status:403,\
    chain"
SecRule ARGS "@rx [;|&`$()]" \
    "msg:'Potential command injection in role endpoint'"