RabbitMQ Java client: Unvalidated Class.forName in JSON-RPC ProcedureDescription enables arbitrary class loading
The JSON-RPC tools in `com.rabbitmq.tools.jsonrpc` perform `Class.forName(javaReturnType)` with `initialize=true` on class names received from untrusted AMQP messages, without any validation or allowlist. **Vulnerable code** (`ProcedureDescription.java:101-127`): When a `JsonRpcClient` connects, it calls `system.describe` and receives a service description from the AMQP queue. The response JSON includes `javaReturnType` fields that are reflectively set via `JSONUtil.tryFill()`, triggering `setJavaReturnType()` → `computeReturnTypeAsJavaClass()` → `Class.forName(javaReturnType)`. **Attack scenario:** 1. Victim uses `JsonRpcClient` to connect to a JSON-RPC service via RabbitMQ 2. Attacker (co-tenant on shared broker, or MITM) intercepts the `system.describe` request 3. Attacker responds with crafted `javaReturnType` values 4. Victim's client calls `Class.forName(attackerInput)` with default `initialize=true` 5. Static initializers of attacker-specified classes execute in victim's JVM Additionally, the loaded class from `getReturnType()` is passed to `mapper.parse(replyStr, expectedType)` at `JsonRpcClient.java:168`, potentially enabling type-confusion. **Recommended fix:** Use `Class.forName(javaReturnType, false, classLoader)` to prevent static initializer execution, or add an allowlist of permitted return types. **CWE:** CWE-470 --- **Reply from reporter (2026-06-29):** Thanks for the quick turnaround. Fix looks good. Looking forward to the CVE assignment.
describes (1)
Related CVEs.
| ID | severity | exploitable | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2026-63337US | — | — | ||
The RabbitMQ Java client library allows Java and JVM-based applications to connect to and interact with RabbitMQ nodes. Prior to 5.33.0, com.rabbitmq.tools.jsonrpc.ProcedureDescrip… | ||||
references
External citations — patches, advisories, analysis.
- https://github.com/rabbitmq/rabbitmq-java-clientPACKAGE
- https://github.com/rabbitmq/rabbitmq-java-client/commit/0032f75f9dc3df847f94b2b85a16119250bf63cbWEB
- https://github.com/rabbitmq/rabbitmq-java-client/commit/9f8e7efd0c648f235dc0e96232ae7efa75ea4fa8WEB
- https://github.com/rabbitmq/rabbitmq-java-client/pull/2000WEB
- https://github.com/rabbitmq/rabbitmq-java-client/pull/2002WEB
- https://github.com/rabbitmq/rabbitmq-java-client/releases/tag/v5.33.0WEB
- https://github.com/rabbitmq/rabbitmq-java-client/security/advisories/GHSA-6g32-pxv4-2wfjWEB
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