# CVE-2008-5351: Security feature bypass in n/a

> Attackers can bypass security mechanisms in applications relying on shortest-form UTF-8 validation by exploiting non-canonical encoding acceptance in the Java Runtime Environment.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 5 Dec 2008
- **Updated:** 7 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-79wc-h5f5-pq4h

## What is CVE-2008-5351?

CVE-2008-5351 is a high-severity vulnerability in Sun Jdk, published on 5 Dec 2008. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Java Runtime Environment (JRE) for Sun JDK and JRE 6 Update 10 and earlier; JDK and JRE 5.0 Update 16 and earlier; and SDK and JRE 1.4.2_18 and earlier accepts UTF-8 encodings that are not the "shortest" form, which makes it easier for attackers to bypass protection mechanisms for other applications that rely on shortest-form UTF-8 encodings.

Weakness: CWE-264

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2008-5351?

It affects 3 products.


Products: Sun Jdk, Sun Jre, Sun Sdk.

## How do I fix CVE-2008-5351?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2008-5351 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2008-5351 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Sun Jdk

- [CVE-2011-3521](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2011-3521/): Deserialization in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2011-3548](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2011-3548/): Other in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2011-3549](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2011-3549/): Other in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2011-3554](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2011-3554/): Other in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2011-0802](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2011-0802/): Other in n/a (critical 10.0)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2008-5351 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2008-5351 is a high-severity vulnerability in Sun Jdk, published on 5 Dec 2008. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2008-5351 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Sun Jdk. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-5351/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-5351/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2008-5351
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2008-5351
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2008-5351

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-5351/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.