CVE-2017-12635 — AI Deep Analysis Summary

Q: Who is affected? (Versions/Components)

📦 **Affected Products**: Apache CouchDB. 📅 **Versions**: < 1.7.0 AND 2.x versions < 2.1.1. 🏢 **Vendor**: Apache Software Foundation. 📉

Q: What can hackers do? (Privileges/Data)

👑 **Privileges**: Escalate from **Non-Admin** to **Admin** (`_admin` role). 🗄️ **Data Access**: Full read/write access to all databases. 💻 **Impact**: Potential Remote Code Execution (RCE) via shell command access. 🚀

Q: Is exploitation threshold high? (Auth/Config)

⚠️ **Threshold**: **LOW**. 📝 **Auth**: Requires a valid non-admin user account to submit the malicious `_users` document. ⚙️ **Config**: Exploits the JSON parsing logic directly via HTTP API. 📡

Q: Is there a public Exp? (PoC/Wild Exploitation)

🔓 **Public Exp**: **YES**. Multiple POCs and Exploits available on GitHub (e.g., `CVE-2017-12635-EXP`, `CVE-2017-12635-POC`). 🌐 **Wild Exploitation**: High risk due to simple Python scripts available. 🐍

Q: Is it fixed officially? (Patch/Mitigation)

🛡️ **Fixed**: **YES**. Official patches released. ✅ **Solution**: Upgrade to **CouchDB 1.7.0** or **2.1.1+**. 🔄 **Vendor Advisory**: Gentoo GLSA-201711-16 and Debian LTS updates confirm fixes. 📜

Q: Is it urgent? (Priority Suggestion)

🔥 **Urgency**: **CRITICAL**. 🚨 **Priority**: **P0**. Immediate patching required. 📉 **Reason**: Easy exploitation leads to total database compromise and potential server takeover. 🏃♂️

Updated May 06, 2026

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Q1What is this vulnerability? (Essence + Consequences)

🚨 **Essence**: A critical privilege escalation flaw in Apache CouchDB.…

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Q2Root Cause? (CWE/Flaw)

🛠️ **Root Cause**: Discrepancy between the **Erlang-based** JSON parser and the **JavaScript-based** JSON parser.…

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Q3Who is affected? (Versions/Components)

📦 **Affected Products**: Apache CouchDB. 📅 **Versions**: < 1.7.0 AND 2.x versions < 2.1.1. 🏢 **Vendor**: Apache Software Foundation. 📉

Q4What can hackers do? (Privileges/Data)

👑 **Privileges**: Escalate from **Non-Admin** to **Admin** (`_admin` role). 🗄️ **Data Access**: Full read/write access to all databases. 💻 **Impact**: Potential Remote Code Execution (RCE) via shell command access. 🚀

Q5Is exploitation threshold high? (Auth/Config)

⚠️ **Threshold**: **LOW**. 📝 **Auth**: Requires a valid non-admin user account to submit the malicious `_users` document. ⚙️ **Config**: Exploits the JSON parsing logic directly via HTTP API. 📡

Q6Is there a public Exp? (PoC/Wild Exploitation)

🔓 **Public Exp**: **YES**. Multiple POCs and Exploits available on GitHub (e.g., `CVE-2017-12635-EXP`, `CVE-2017-12635-POC`). 🌐 **Wild Exploitation**: High risk due to simple Python scripts available. 🐍

Q7How to self-check? (Features/Scanning)

🔍 **Self-Check**: Scan for CouchDB instances on port 5984. 🧪 **Test**: Attempt to create a user with duplicate `roles` keys in the JSON payload.…

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Q8Is it fixed officially? (Patch/Mitigation)

🛡️ **Fixed**: **YES**. Official patches released. ✅ **Solution**: Upgrade to **CouchDB 1.7.0** or **2.1.1+**. 🔄 **Vendor Advisory**: Gentoo GLSA-201711-16 and Debian LTS updates confirm fixes. 📜

Q9What if no patch? (Workaround)

🚧 **Workaround**: If patching is impossible, **disable public registration** of users. 🔒 **Mitigation**: Restrict access to the `_users` database via firewall or reverse proxy.…

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Q10Is it urgent? (Priority Suggestion)

🔥 **Urgency**: **CRITICAL**. 🚨 **Priority**: **P0**. Immediate patching required. 📉 **Reason**: Easy exploitation leads to total database compromise and potential server takeover. 🏃‍♂️

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