# CVE-2022-31691: Code injection in Spring by VMware

> Attackers can execute arbitrary code via malicious YAML files processed by the Snakeyaml library in Spring Tools and related VSCode extensions.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 4 Nov 2022
- **Updated:** 2 May 2025
- **Also known as:** GHSA-r5cr-5j3q-vpf6

## What is CVE-2022-31691?

CVE-2022-31691 is a critical code injection vulnerability in Spring by VMware, published on 4 Nov 2022. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Spring Tools 4 for Eclipse version 4.16.0 and below as well as VSCode extensions such as Spring Boot Tools, Concourse CI Pipeline Editor, Bosh Editor and Cloudfoundry Manifest YML Support version 1.39.0 and below all use Snakeyaml library for YAML editing support. This library allows for some special syntax in the YAML that under certain circumstances allows for potentially harmful remote code execution by the attacker.

Weakness: CWE-94 (Improper Control of Generation of Code)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2022-31691?

It affects 5 products.


Products: Vmware Bosh Editor, Vmware Cloudfoundry Manifest Yml Support, Vmware Concourse Ci Pipeline Editor, Vmware Spring Boot Tools, Vmware Spring Tools.

## How do I fix CVE-2022-31691?

No fix has been published for CVE-2022-31691 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2022-31691 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2022-31691 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Public exploit code:

- A write-up of my (so far inconclusive) look into CVE-2022-31691 (github_poc): https://github.com/blipzip/CVE-2022-31691

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2022-31691 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2022-31691 is a critical code injection vulnerability in Spring by VMware, published on 4 Nov 2022. 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-2022-31691 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Spring by VMware. 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-2022-31691/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-31691/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-31691
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-31691
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2022-31691

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-31691/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.