CVE-2026-48384 Overview
Adobe ColdFusion contains an improper input validation vulnerability that enables an authenticated attacker with high privileges to trigger an application denial-of-service condition. The flaw affects Adobe ColdFusion 2023 (through Update 22) and Adobe ColdFusion 2025 (through Update 11). Successful exploitation crashes the ColdFusion application without requiring user interaction, disrupting availability for all users of the affected server. The weakness is categorized under [CWE-20: Improper Input Validation]. Adobe published the corresponding security advisory tracked as APSB26-90.
Critical Impact
An attacker holding high-privilege access to a vulnerable ColdFusion instance can send malformed input that crashes the application, producing a denial-of-service condition across all hosted applications on that server.
Affected Products
- Adobe ColdFusion 2023 (base release through Update 22)
- Adobe ColdFusion 2025 (base release through Update 11)
- Deployments running any listed intermediate update level of ColdFusion 2023 or 2025
Discovery Timeline
- 2026-08-11 - CVE-2026-48384 published to NVD
- 2026-08-13 - Last updated in NVD database
Technical Details for CVE-2026-48384
Vulnerability Analysis
The vulnerability resides in ColdFusion's input handling logic, where certain inputs are not validated against expected constraints before being processed. When malformed or unexpected data reaches the vulnerable code path, ColdFusion fails to reject the input gracefully. Instead, the application enters an error state that terminates the running service. Because ColdFusion typically hosts multiple applications on a single JVM, a crash impacts every workload sharing that instance. The vulnerability does not expose confidentiality or integrity but eliminates availability until the service is restarted.
Root Cause
The root cause is improper input validation ([CWE-20]) in an authenticated ColdFusion component. Input reaches downstream processing without checks sufficient to prevent an unhandled exception or resource fault. Adobe's advisory (APSB26-90) confirms the classification and identifies fixed builds for both 2023 and 2025 release trains.
Attack Vector
Exploitation occurs over the network against an authenticated interface. The attacker must already hold high privileges on the target ColdFusion server, meaning access to an administrative or comparably privileged account is required. No user interaction is needed. Once authenticated, the attacker submits crafted input to the vulnerable endpoint to crash the application. The vulnerability has an EPSS score of 0.689% as of 2026-08-13, and no public proof-of-concept or in-the-wild exploitation has been reported at the time of publication.
No verified exploit code is publicly available. Refer to the Adobe ColdFusion Security Advisory (APSB26-90) for vendor-supplied technical context.
Detection Methods for CVE-2026-48384
Indicators of Compromise
- Unexpected ColdFusion service crashes or JVM terminations recorded in coldfusion-out.log or exception.log
- Sudden loss of availability for ColdFusion-hosted applications correlated with recent administrator-authenticated requests
- Repeated malformed requests to administrative endpoints originating from a single source IP
Detection Strategies
- Monitor ColdFusion application logs for stack traces or fatal errors that precede service restarts
- Correlate administrator authentication events with subsequent service instability to identify abuse of privileged accounts
- Track ColdFusion process uptime and alert on unplanned restarts outside maintenance windows
Monitoring Recommendations
- Forward ColdFusion logs and Windows or Linux service-manager events to a centralized SIEM for anomaly analysis
- Alert on failed input validation errors and repeated 5xx responses from administrative URIs
- Baseline normal administrator activity and flag deviations such as off-hours logins followed by service crashes
How to Mitigate CVE-2026-48384
Immediate Actions Required
- Apply Adobe's security updates for ColdFusion 2023 and ColdFusion 2025 as described in APSB26-90
- Audit and rotate credentials for all high-privilege ColdFusion accounts to reduce the pool of accounts capable of exploiting this issue
- Restrict network access to ColdFusion administrative interfaces to trusted management networks only
Patch Information
Adobe has released fixed builds for both affected release trains. Administrators should install the update level identified in the Adobe ColdFusion Security Advisory (APSB26-90) for ColdFusion 2023 and ColdFusion 2025. Verify the running update level after installation using the ColdFusion Administrator or by inspecting the deployment build metadata.
Workarounds
- Enforce network-level access controls that block untrusted sources from reaching ColdFusion administrative endpoints
- Enable multi-factor authentication on all ColdFusion administrator accounts to reduce the risk of high-privilege account compromise
- Configure service supervision to automatically restart ColdFusion after a crash while patching is scheduled
# Configuration example: restrict access to the ColdFusion Administrator with an IP allowlist (Apache reverse proxy)
<Location /CFIDE/administrator>
Require ip 10.0.0.0/24
Require ip 192.168.10.0/24
</Location>
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
