CVE-2023-34035
Spring Security versions 5.8 prior to 5.8.5, 6.0 prior to 6.0.5, and 6.1 prior to 6.1.2 could be susceptible to authorization rule misconfiguration if the application uses requestMatchers(String) and multiple servlets, one of them being Spring MVC’s DispatcherServlet. (DispatcherServlet is a Spring MVC component that maps HTTP endpoints to methods on @Controller-annotated classes.)
Specifically, an application is vulnerable when all of the following are true:
- Spring MVC is on the classpath
- Spring Security is securing more than one servlet in a single application (one of them being Spring MVC’s DispatcherServlet)
- The application uses requestMatchers(String) to refer to endpoints that are not Spring MVC endpoints
An application is not vulnerable if any of the following is true:
- The application does not have Spring MVC on the classpath
- The application secures no servlets other than Spring MVC’s DispatcherServlet
- The application uses requestMatchers(String) only for Spring MVC endpoints
| Software | From | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
org.springframework.security / spring-security-config
|
5.8.0 | 5.8.5 |
|
org.springframework.security / spring-security-config
|
6.0.0 | 6.0.5 |
|
org.springframework.security / spring-security-config
|
6.1.0 | 6.1.2 |
| vmware / spring_security | 6.1.0 | 6.1.2 |
| vmware / spring_security | 6.0.0 | 6.0.5 |
| vmware / spring_security | 5.8.0 | 5.8.5 |
- https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-security-samples/commit/4e3bec904a5467db28ea33e25ac9d90524b53d66
- https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-security-samples/tree/main/servlet/java-configuration/authentication/preauth
- https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-security/commit/bb46a5427005e33e637b15948de8adae244ce547
- https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-security/commit/df239b6448ccf138b0c95b5575a88f33ac35cd9a
- https://spring.io/security/cve-2023-34035
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Frequently Asked Questions
A security vulnerability is a weakness in software, hardware, or configuration that can be exploited to compromise confidentiality, integrity, or availability. Many vulnerabilities are tracked as CVEs (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures), which provide a standardized identifier so teams can coordinate patching, mitigation, and risk assessment across tools and vendors.
CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) estimates technical severity, but it doesn't automatically equal business risk. Prioritize using context like internet exposure, affected asset criticality, known exploitation (proof-of-concept or in-the-wild), and whether compensating controls exist. A "Medium" CVSS on an exposed, production system can be more urgent than a "Critical" on an isolated, non-production host.
A vulnerability is the underlying weakness. An exploit is the method or code used to take advantage of it. A zero-day is a vulnerability that is unknown to the vendor or has no publicly available fix when attackers begin using it. In practice, risk increases sharply when exploitation becomes reliable or widespread.
Recurring findings usually come from incomplete Asset Discovery, inconsistent patch management, inherited images, and configuration drift. In modern environments, you also need to watch the software supply chain: dependencies, containers, build pipelines, and third-party services can reintroduce the same weakness even after you patch a single host. Unknown or unmanaged assets (often called Shadow IT) are a common reason the same issues resurface.
Use a simple, repeatable triage model: focus first on externally exposed assets, high-value systems (identity, VPN, email, production), vulnerabilities with known exploits, and issues that enable remote code execution or privilege escalation. Then enforce patch SLAs and track progress using consistent metrics so remediation is steady, not reactive.
SynScan combines attack surface monitoring and continuous security auditing to keep your inventory current, flag high-impact vulnerabilities early, and help you turn raw findings into a practical remediation plan.