CVE-2025-68161
4.8 · MEDIUMOverview
CVE-2025-68161 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting apache log4j. It was published on December 18, 2025 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 4.8 (MEDIUM).
This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 4.8, rated MEDIUM. It can be exploited remotely over the network. No authentication or special privileges are required for exploitation.
Technical Description
The Socket Appender in Apache Log4j Core versions 2.0-beta9 through 2.25.2 does not perform TLS hostname verification of the peer certificate, even when the verifyHostName https://logging.apache.org/log4j/2.x/manual/appenders/network.html#SslConfiguration-attr-verifyHostName configuration attribute or the log4j2.sslVerifyHostName https://logging.apache.org/log4j/2.x/manual/systemproperties.html#log4j2.sslVerifyHostName system property is set to true.
This issue may allow a man-in-the-middle attacker to intercept or redirect log traffic under the following conditions:
* The attacker is able to intercept or redirect network traffic between the client and the log receiver.
* The attacker can present a server certificate issued by a certification authority trusted by the Socket Appender’s configured trust store (or by the default Java trust store if no custom trust store is configured).
Users are advised to upgrade to Apache Log4j Core version 2.25.3, which addresses this iss
Remediation
Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from apache. Update log4j to the latest patched version. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.
Affected Products
| Vendor | Product | Versions | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| apache | log4j | >= 2.0.1, < 2.25.3 | Affected |
References
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CVE-2025-68161?
CVE-2025-68161 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting apache log4j. It was published on December 18, 2025 and has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 4.8 (MEDIUM).
How severe is CVE-2025-68161?
This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 4.8, rated MEDIUM. It can be exploited remotely over the network. No authentication or special privileges are required for exploitation.
How do I fix or remediate CVE-2025-68161?
Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from apache. Update log4j to the latest patched version. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.
How can CyberStrike help with CVE-2025-68161?
CyberStrike's AI-powered security agents can automatically detect CVE-2025-68161 across your infrastructure using autonomous pentesting, DAST scanning, and HackBrowser. The platform continuously monitors for known vulnerabilities and provides actionable remediation guidance prioritized by real-world exploitability.
How CyberStrike Helps
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