Vulnerability report

Exploitation Attempts Observed Confirmed Confidence Not in CISA KEV

CVE-2025-54988

Apache Tika PDF parser module XXE vulnerability in PDFParser's handling of XFA

Apache Tika PDF parser module · 1.13 to <= 3.2.1

Watch CVE-2025-54988 Browse KEV feed
Severity
CVSS 8.4 · High
Confidence
Confirmed
Exploit status
Observed in sensors
EPSS
47.9%
First observed
20 Sep 2026
Last observed
28 Oct 2026

Decision summary

What security teams need to know first

Direct answers before the deeper technical record.

What it is

CVE-2025-54988 is an unauthenticated vulnerability affecting Apache Tika PDF parser module. Critical XXE in Apache Tika (tika-parser-pdf-module) in Apache Tika 1.13 through and including 3.2.1 on all platforms allows...

Have exploitation attempts been observed?

Yes. Previdian sensors have observed 10 exploitation attempts, 4 unique attacker IPs, and 4 countries targeting CVE-2025-54988. First observed Sep 20, 2026; last observed Oct 28, 2026. Confidence is confirmed.

Who is affected?

Apache Tika PDF parser module 1.13 to <= 3.2.1.

What should we do?

Patch immediately, validate internet-facing exposure, and monitor for matching requests.

Overview

Apache Tika PDF parser module XXE vulnerability in PDFParser's handling of XFA

Critical XXE in Apache Tika (tika-parser-pdf-module) in Apache Tika 1.13 through and including 3.2.1 on all platforms allows an attacker to carry out XML External Entity injection via a crafted XFA file inside of a PDF. An attacker may be able to read sensitive data or trigger malicious requests to internal resources or third-party servers. Note that the tika-parser-pdf-module is used as a dependency in several Tika packages including at least: tika-parsers-standard-modules, tika-parsers-standard-package, tika-app, tika-grpc and tika-server-standard.

Users are recommended to upgrade to version 3.2.2, which fixes this issue.

Apache Software Foundation Affected
Apache Tika PDF parser module org.apache.tika:tika-parser-pdf-module
Through 3.2.1
View vendor advisory (opens in new tab)
Published
20 Aug 2025
Exploitation Attempts Reported
20 Sep 2026
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None

Tags

apache nuclei_scanner metasploit_scanner

CVE References

  • CVE Record CVE.org · CVE Record https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-54988
  • Apache Mailing List lists.apache.org · Vendor Advisory https://lists.apache.org/thread/8xn3rqy6kz5b3l1t83kcofkw0w4mmj1w

Exploitation evidence

Evidence of exploitation attempts

Third-party attestation and first-party sensor observation are shown separately so teams can judge the evidence chain.

Exploitation Attempts Observed in the Wild

Previdian

Recorded 20 Sep 2026

Previdian sensors observed exploitation attempts targeting this vulnerability.

Exploitation Attempts Observed

Previdian sensor

First observed 20 Sep 2026

Previdian sensors observed exploitation attempts targeting this vulnerability.

Proof of concept available

Nuclei Templates

Recorded 31 Jul 2026

Public scanner or PoC coverage increases practical exploitability.

Known exploited vulnerability sources

Per-source evidence links for KEV attestations are available through the Previdian Pro API.

Learn about Pro API access
Source Added
Previdian Sensors First 2026-10-28 16:18 UTC

Operational indicators for this CVE are listed under Detection.

Sensor telemetry

Previdian Sensor Observations

Previdian sensor observations are exploitation attempts targeting this vulnerability. They do not show that the target was vulnerable or that the attempt succeeded. The cards and chart show volume, unique attackers, and daily activity.

10

Attempts observed

4

Unique attacker IPs

4

Attacker countries

CH · JP · US · YE

4

Sensors observed

CVE-2025-54988 exploitation attempts over the last 42 days

Daily events observed by Previdian sensors

Updated 30 Oct 2026

0
2
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
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4
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0
19 Sep 28 Sep 7 Oct 16 Oct 30 Oct

First observed 20 Sep 2026 · Last observed 28 Oct 2026

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Detection

Operational artifacts and observed signals

Make the evidence actionable in scanner, SOC, and edge-control workflows.

Observed signals

Request targets
User-Agents
Callback hosts
1
6
0

Request targets and User-Agents available in Pro. Callback host details available in Enterprise.

Virtual patch status

No Previdian virtual patch is currently available. Future rules ship for ModSecurity, Cloudflare, and AWS WAF.

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Attacker IP Indicators

Attacker IP indicators observed · available in Pro and Enterprise.

Sensor-derived attacker IP indicators are available to Pro and Enterprise accounts under Detection and through the Pro API.

Learn about Pro API access

Scanner Artifacts

Scanner and exploit-framework references linked to this CVE.

Scanner Reference Detected
Nuclei https://github.com/projectdiscovery/nuclei-templates/blob/main/http/cves/2025/CVE-2025-54988.yaml 31 Jul 2026
Metasploit https://github.com/rapid7/metasploit-framework/blob/master/modules/auxiliary/scanner/http/elasticsearch_tika_xfa_xxe.rb 20 Aug 2025

Risk and context

Severity, weaknesses, and research context

CVSS v3.1

8.4 High

Potential damage if exploited. Separate from whether attackers are using it.

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

EPSS

47.9%

Estimated chance of exploitation in the next 30 days. Previdian's warning comes from evidence, not this score.

Weaknesses

Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference CWE-611

Recent mention · Rapid7

Metasploit Wrap Up: This One Goes to Sixteen!

This One Goes to Sixteen!Another banger from Metasploit with sixteen new modules, including ten exploit modules, with five on the CISA KEV list. Cisco, Papercut, Sonicwall, Jetbrains, and Langflow all have exploit modules, and not to be outdone, we even have a Metasploit...

Read full advisory

Potential Proof of Concepts

These PoCs are unverified and could contain malware. Use at your own risk.

Apache Tika - XXE Injection

nuclei · Created Unknown

Timeline

From disclosure to observed exploitation attempts

  1. 10:40 UTC

    Indicators of compromise added (2)

    Indicators of compromise recorded

  2. 13:18 UTC

    Observed by Previdian sensors

    Previdian sensors observed exploitation attempts targeting this vulnerability.

  3. 04:30 UTC

    Public PoC available

    Public proof-of-concept code published

  4. 04:30 UTC

    Nuclei template available

    Scanner coverage available

  5. 20:08 UTC

    CVE published

    Vulnerability disclosed publicly

  6. 00:00 UTC

    Metasploit module available

    Exploit module available

  7. 16:04 UTC

    CVE ID reserved

    Identifier reserved by the CNA

Pro API

Automate this intelligence

Confidence, exploit status, sensor telemetry, PoCs, scanner integrations, mentions, and tags are available programmatically for VM, SOC, and CTI workflows.

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  • Evidence confidence and provenance
  • First-party sensor telemetry
  • PoC and scanner references
  • Affected versions and enrichment
  • Automation-ready JSON delivery

GET /api/v2/pro/kevs/CVE-2025-54988

Sample API response 
{
  "cve_id": "CVE-2025-54988",
  "confidence": "Confirmed",
  "cvss_score": 8.4,
  "cvss_estimated": false,
  "epss_score": 0.47948,
  "exploit_status": {
    "exploited_in_the_wild": true,
    "active_exploitation_observed": true
  },
  "sensor_telemetry": { "attempts": 10, "sensors": 4 }
}