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PMD Designer's release key passphrase (GPG) available on Maven Central in cleartext

Low severity GitHub Reviewed Published Jan 31, 2025 in pmd/pmd • Updated Jan 31, 2025

Package

maven net.sourceforge.pmd:pmd-core (Maven)

Affected versions

>= 6.21.0, < 7.10.0

Patched versions

7.10.0
maven net.sourceforge.pmd:pmd-designer (Maven)
>= 7.0.0, < 7.10.0
7.10.0
maven net.sourceforge.pmd:pmd-ui (Maven)
= 6.14.0
None

Description

Summary

While rebuilding PMD Designer for Reproducible Builds and digging into issues, I found out that passphrase for gpg.keyname=0xD0BF1D737C9A1C22 is included in jar published to Maven Central.

Details

See https://github.com/jvm-repo-rebuild/reproducible-central/blob/master/content/net/sourceforge/pmd/pmd-designer/README.md

I removed 2 lines from https://github.com/jvm-repo-rebuild/reproducible-central/blob/master/content/net/sourceforge/pmd/pmd-designer/pmd-designer-7.0.0.diffoscope but real content is:

├── net/sourceforge/pmd/util/fxdesigner/designer.properties
│ @@ -1,14 +1,12 @@
│  #Properties
│  checkstyle.plugin.version=3.3.1
│  checkstyle.version=10.14.0
│ -gpg.keyname=0xD0BF1D737C9A1C22
│ -gpg.passphrase=evicx0nuPfvSVhVyeXpw
│  jar.plugin.version=3.3.0
│ -java.version=11.0.22
│ +java.version=11.0.25
│  javadoc.plugin.version=3.6.3
│  jflex-output=/home/runner/work/pmd-designer/pmd-designer/target/generated-sources/jflex
│  junit5.version=5.8.2
│  kotest.version=5.5.5
│  kotlin.version=1.7.20
│  local.lib.repo=/home/runner/work/pmd-designer/pmd-designer/lib/mvn-repo
│  openjfx.scope=provided

PoC

./rebuild.sh content/net/sourceforge/pmd/pmd-designer/pmd-designer-7.0.0.buildspec

Impact

After further analysis, the passphrase of the following two keys have been compromised:

  1. 94A5 2756 9CAF 7A47 AFCA BDE4 86D3 7ECA 8C2E 4C5B: PMD Designer (Release Signing Key) releases@pmd-code.org
    This key has been used since 2019 with the release of net.sourceforge.pmd:pmd-ui:6.14.0.
    The following versions are signed with the same key: 6.16.0, 6.17.0, 6.19.0.
  2. EBB2 41A5 45CB 17C8 7FAC B2EB D0BF 1D73 7C9A 1C22: PMD Release Signing Key releases@pmd-code.org
    This key has been used since 2020 with the release of net.sourceforge.pmd:pmd-ui:6.21.0
    and all the other modules of PMD such as net.sourceforge.pmd:pmd-core:6.21.0.
    This key has also been used for PMD 7, for the designer, e.g. net.sourceforge.pmd:pmd-designer:7.0.0
    and net.sourceforge.pmd:pmd-core:7.0.0.
    The versions between 6.21.0 and 7.9.0 are signed with this key.
    Additionally the key has been used to sign the last release of PMD Eclipse Plugin 7.9.0.v20241227-1626-r.

The keys have been used exclusively for signing artifacts that we published to Maven Central under group id net.sourceforge.pmd and once for our pmd-eclipse-plugin. The private key itself is not known to have been compromised itself, but given its passphrase is, it must also be considered potentially compromised.

As a mitigation, both compromised keys have been revoked so that no future use of the keys are possible.
For future releases of PMD, PMD Designer and PMD Eclipse Plugin we use a new release signing key:
2EFA 55D0 785C 31F9 56F2 F87E A0B5 CA1A 4E08 6838 (PMD Release Signing Key releases@pmd-code.org).

Note, that the published artifacts in Maven Central under the group id net.sourceforge.pmd are not
compromised and the signatures are valid. No other past usages of the private key is known to the project
and no future use is possible due to the revocation. If anybody finds a past abuse of the private key,
please share with us.

Note, the module net.sourceforge.pmd:pmd-ui has been renamed to net.sourceforge.pmd:pmd-designer since PMD 7, so there won't be a fixed version for pmd-ui.

Fixes

References

References

@adangel adangel published to pmd/pmd Jan 31, 2025
Published by the National Vulnerability Database Jan 31, 2025
Published to the GitHub Advisory Database Jan 31, 2025
Reviewed Jan 31, 2025
Last updated Jan 31, 2025

Severity

Low

CVSS overall score

This score calculates overall vulnerability severity from 0 to 10 and is based on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS).
/ 10

CVSS v4 base metrics

Exploitability Metrics
Attack Vector Network
Attack Complexity Low
Attack Requirements None
Privileges Required None
User interaction None
Vulnerable System Impact Metrics
Confidentiality High
Integrity High
Availability High
Subsequent System Impact Metrics
Confidentiality None
Integrity None
Availability None

CVSS v4 base metrics

Exploitability Metrics
Attack Vector: This metric reflects the context by which vulnerability exploitation is possible. This metric value (and consequently the resulting severity) will be larger the more remote (logically, and physically) an attacker can be in order to exploit the vulnerable system. The assumption is that the number of potential attackers for a vulnerability that could be exploited from across a network is larger than the number of potential attackers that could exploit a vulnerability requiring physical access to a device, and therefore warrants a greater severity.
Attack Complexity: This metric captures measurable actions that must be taken by the attacker to actively evade or circumvent existing built-in security-enhancing conditions in order to obtain a working exploit. These are conditions whose primary purpose is to increase security and/or increase exploit engineering complexity. A vulnerability exploitable without a target-specific variable has a lower complexity than a vulnerability that would require non-trivial customization. This metric is meant to capture security mechanisms utilized by the vulnerable system.
Attack Requirements: This metric captures the prerequisite deployment and execution conditions or variables of the vulnerable system that enable the attack. These differ from security-enhancing techniques/technologies (ref Attack Complexity) as the primary purpose of these conditions is not to explicitly mitigate attacks, but rather, emerge naturally as a consequence of the deployment and execution of the vulnerable system.
Privileges Required: This metric describes the level of privileges an attacker must possess prior to successfully exploiting the vulnerability. The method by which the attacker obtains privileged credentials prior to the attack (e.g., free trial accounts), is outside the scope of this metric. Generally, self-service provisioned accounts do not constitute a privilege requirement if the attacker can grant themselves privileges as part of the attack.
User interaction: This metric captures the requirement for a human user, other than the attacker, to participate in the successful compromise of the vulnerable system. This metric determines whether the vulnerability can be exploited solely at the will of the attacker, or whether a separate user (or user-initiated process) must participate in some manner.
Vulnerable System Impact Metrics
Confidentiality: This metric measures the impact to the confidentiality of the information managed by the VULNERABLE SYSTEM due to a successfully exploited vulnerability. Confidentiality refers to limiting information access and disclosure to only authorized users, as well as preventing access by, or disclosure to, unauthorized ones.
Integrity: This metric measures the impact to integrity of a successfully exploited vulnerability. Integrity refers to the trustworthiness and veracity of information. Integrity of the VULNERABLE SYSTEM is impacted when an attacker makes unauthorized modification of system data. Integrity is also impacted when a system user can repudiate critical actions taken in the context of the system (e.g. due to insufficient logging).
Availability: This metric measures the impact to the availability of the VULNERABLE SYSTEM resulting from a successfully exploited vulnerability. While the Confidentiality and Integrity impact metrics apply to the loss of confidentiality or integrity of data (e.g., information, files) used by the system, this metric refers to the loss of availability of the impacted system itself, such as a networked service (e.g., web, database, email). Since availability refers to the accessibility of information resources, attacks that consume network bandwidth, processor cycles, or disk space all impact the availability of a system.
Subsequent System Impact Metrics
Confidentiality: This metric measures the impact to the confidentiality of the information managed by the SUBSEQUENT SYSTEM due to a successfully exploited vulnerability. Confidentiality refers to limiting information access and disclosure to only authorized users, as well as preventing access by, or disclosure to, unauthorized ones.
Integrity: This metric measures the impact to integrity of a successfully exploited vulnerability. Integrity refers to the trustworthiness and veracity of information. Integrity of the SUBSEQUENT SYSTEM is impacted when an attacker makes unauthorized modification of system data. Integrity is also impacted when a system user can repudiate critical actions taken in the context of the system (e.g. due to insufficient logging).
Availability: This metric measures the impact to the availability of the SUBSEQUENT SYSTEM resulting from a successfully exploited vulnerability. While the Confidentiality and Integrity impact metrics apply to the loss of confidentiality or integrity of data (e.g., information, files) used by the system, this metric refers to the loss of availability of the impacted system itself, such as a networked service (e.g., web, database, email). Since availability refers to the accessibility of information resources, attacks that consume network bandwidth, processor cycles, or disk space all impact the availability of a system.
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/MVC:N/MVI:N/MVA:N/U:Clear

EPSS score

Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS)

This score estimates the probability of this vulnerability being exploited within the next 30 days. Data provided by FIRST.
(18th percentile)

Weaknesses

CVE ID

CVE-2025-23215

GHSA ID

GHSA-88m4-h43f-wx84

Source code

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