Jenkins Active Directory Plugin follows LDAP referrals by default

Exploitation

No confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next marks exploitation only from CISA KEV.

CVSS

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

EPSS

• CVE-2026-48918: 0.22% estimated exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 12.96 (FIRST EPSS, 2026-11-03). This is a model estimate, not proof of exploitation or customer exposure.

As published by the source; long descriptions are shortened.

Jenkins Active Directory Plugin 2.41 and earlier follows LDAP referrals from the configured Active Directory server by default. These can forward to an RMI URL that causes Jenkins to deserialize attacker-controlled data, resulting in Remote Code Execution (RCE) on the Jenkins controller if deserialization "gadgets" are available on the classpath. This allows attackers able to control the configured Active Directory server, or able to perform a machine-in-the-middle attack, to execute code on the Jenkins controller. Active Directory Plugin 2.41.1 no longer follows LDAP referrals by default. Administrators unable to update to a fixed version can start Jenkins with the Java system property hudson.plugins.activedirectory.referral.ignore set to true to mitigate the vulnerability. Administrators of Jenkins controllers requiring following LDAP referrals can set the Java system property hudson.plugins.activedirectory.referral.ignore to false to restore the previous behavior.

Published by the source

27 May 2026, 15:33 UTC

Last modified by the source

1 Jul 2026, 19:30 UTC

Source last checked

26 Oct 2026, 16:54 UTC

1. Revision 1 · created · 26 Oct 2026

   Published from ghsa record GHSA-wrhr-54p6-q97f

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# Patch Next advisory brief: CVE-2026-48918

Advisory: Jenkins Active Directory Plugin follows LDAP referrals by default
IDs: CVE-2026-48918, GHSA-wrhr-54p6-q97f
Record: https://patchnext.com/advisories/cve-2026-48918 (revision 1, source checked 26 Oct 2026, 16:54 UTC)
Inventory: none attached. This brief comes from a public page and does not say whether any deployment is affected.
Severity: Medium (CVSS 6.6)
Exploitation: no confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next confirms exploitation only from CISA KEV.
Vendor response: Vendor fix available; fixed versions by package: org.jenkins-ci.plugins:active-directory 2.41.1. A vendor fix does not mean a deployment is fixed.

## Affected components
- Maven org.jenkins-ci.plugins:active-directory: affected < 2.41.1; fixed in 2.41.1

## Suggested inspection (read-only)
- Maven org.jenkins-ci.plugins:active-directory: check the installed version with your package manager.

## Supported action
Upgrade each affected component to a fixed version on its release line. For a transitive dependency, upgrade the parent package or add an override or constraint, then regenerate the lockfile. Redeploy every environment that ran an affected version.

## Required regression checks
- Run the test suite and a production build.
- Exercise the features that depend on org.jenkins-ci.plugins:active-directory.
- Repeat the inspection and confirm that only fixed versions remain installed.

## Rollback considerations
- Keep the previous lockfile and deployment artifact. Rolling back reinstates the vulnerable version, so apply any documented mitigation while you fix forward.

## Unresolved questions
- Which deployments run an affected version?
- Exploitation status can change. Check again before lowering the priority.
- Mark the work resolved only after the fixed version is verified in production.

## Sources
- Verified: https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-wrhr-54p6-q97f (GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-wrhr-54p6-q97f lists affected ranges: Maven org.jenkins-ci.plugins:active-directory >=0 <2.41.1)

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