CVE-2009-3548 in Tomcat
Summary
by MITRE
The Windows installer for Apache Tomcat 6.0.0 through 6.0.20, 5.5.0 through 5.5.28, and possibly earlier versions uses a blank default password for the administrative user, which allows remote attackers to gain privileges.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/04/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2009-3548 represents a critical security flaw in the Apache Tomcat installation process on Windows systems. This issue affects multiple versions of the Tomcat application server, specifically ranging from 6.0.0 through 6.0.20 and 5.5.0 through 5.5.28, with potential impacts extending to earlier releases. The flaw resides in the default installation configuration where the administrative user account is created with a blank password, creating an easily exploitable security weakness that adversaries can leverage for unauthorized access.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from poor credential management during the installation process. When administrators install Apache Tomcat on Windows platforms, the installer automatically creates an administrative user account without requiring a password to be set. This default configuration violates fundamental security principles and creates a backdoor access point that remains accessible throughout the system's operational lifecycle. The blank password effectively eliminates any authentication barrier, allowing any remote attacker who can reach the system to assume administrative privileges and execute arbitrary commands with full system access.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability presents a severe risk to organizations deploying Apache Tomcat servers in production environments. Attackers can exploit this weakness to gain complete control over affected systems, potentially leading to data breaches, system compromise, and unauthorized access to sensitive information. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it affects the installation process itself rather than runtime behavior, meaning that even systems that appear secure at runtime can be compromised through simple network access. This flaw aligns with CWE-259: Use of Hard-coded Password and CWE-798: Use of Hard-coded Credentials, both of which are recognized as high-risk security weaknesses in the Common Weakness Enumeration catalog.
The attack surface for this vulnerability is significant, as it requires no specialized knowledge or complex exploitation techniques beyond basic network connectivity to the affected system. According to ATT&CK framework methodology, this vulnerability maps to T1078: Valid Accounts, as attackers can leverage the default administrative account to establish persistent access. The exploitation process typically involves connecting to the Tomcat administrative interface and using the default blank password to authenticate as the administrator, thereby gaining full control over the application server and potentially the underlying system.
Organizations should implement immediate remediation measures including updating to patched versions of Apache Tomcat where available, manually setting strong passwords for administrative accounts, and conducting comprehensive audits of all installed Tomcat instances to identify and correct this configuration weakness. Security monitoring should include detection of default administrative accounts with weak or blank credentials, and network segmentation should be implemented to limit access to administrative interfaces. Additionally, regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to ensure that similar configuration weaknesses do not exist in other software components within the organization's infrastructure. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper default configuration management and the necessity of implementing principle of least privilege access controls in all application deployments.