Apache Tomcat 7.0.x < 7.0.78 Remote Error Page Manipulation

The version of Apache Tomcat installed on the remote host is version 7.x prior to 7.0.78. It is, therefore, affected by an implementation flaw in the error page reporting mechanism in which it does not conform to the Java Servlet Specification that requires static error pages to be processed as an HTTP GET request nothwithstanding the HTTP request method that was originally used when the error occurred. Depending on the original request and the configuration of the Default Servlet, an unauthenticated, remote attacker can exploit this issue to replace or remove custom error pages.

Note that Nessus Network Monitor has not attempted to exploit this issue but has instead relied only on the application’s self-reported version number.