Two-year-old Java flaw re-emerges due to broken patch
A patch for a critical Java flaw released by Oracle in 2013 is ineffective and can be easily bypassed, security researchers warn. This makes the vulnerability exploitable again, paving the way for attacks against PCs and servers running the latest versions of Java.
The flaw, tracked as CVE-2013-5838 in the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) database, was rated by Oracle 9.3 out of 10 using the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS). It can be exploited remotely, without authentication, to completely compromise a system's confidentiality, integrity and availability.
According to researchers from Polish security firm Security Explorations who originally reported the flaw to Oracle, attackers can exploit it to escape from the Java security sandbox. Under normal conditions, the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) executes Java code inside a virtual machine that is subject to security restrictions.
