ModSecurity empty XML tag causes segmentation fault
Published Jul 2, 2025
6.5
MEDIUMCVSS 3.1
EPSS 0.38%
Description
ModSecurity is an open source, cross platform web application firewall (WAF) engine for Apache, IIS and Nginx. In versions 2.9.8 to before 2.9.11, an empty XML tag can cause a segmentation fault. If SecParseXmlIntoArgs is set to On or OnlyArgs, and the request type is application/xml, and at least one XML tag is empty (eg <foo></foo>), then a segmentation fault occurs. This issue has been patched in version 2.9.11. A workaround involves setting SecParseXmlIntoArgs to Off.
Affected products
-
- Version >= 2.9.8, < 2.9.11StatusaffectedConstraints-
- Version
Default status is the baseline for the product, each version can override it (e.g. patched versions marked unaffected).
| Vendor | Product | Default status | Versions | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Owasp-Modsecurity | ModSecurity | n/a |
|
No data.
No data.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
mod_security
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
mod_security
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
mod_security
Not affected
Red Hat JBoss Core Services
jbcs-httpd24-mod_security
Not affected
Red Hat JBoss Core Services
mod_security
Not affected
| Product | Package | State | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | mod_security | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | mod_security | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 | mod_security | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat JBoss Core Services | jbcs-httpd24-mod_security | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat JBoss Core Services | mod_security | Not affected | n/a |
No package ranges for this CVE.
Remediation
Red Hat mitigation
Users unable to upgrade may set `SecParseXmlIntoArgs` to `Off`
References (7)
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-52891 Vendor Advisory
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2375926 Issue Tracking
- https://euvd.enisa.europa.eu/vulnerability/EUVD-2025-19726 Advisory
- https://github.com/owasp-modsecurity/ModSecurity/commit/ecd7b9736836eee391d25f35d5bd06a3ce35a45d x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/owasp-modsecurity/ModSecurity/security/advisories/GHSA-gw9c-4wfm-vj3x x_refsource_CONFIRM
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-52891
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-52891
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.