Threats / Adobe / CVE-2018-15961
CVE-2018-15961
· EUVD no mirror located
· GCVE no mirror located
Verified 2026-06-22
Adobe ColdFusion vulnerability
Adobe ColdFusion contains an unrestricted file upload vulnerability (CWE-434) enabling remote code execution. The vulnerability has been exploited in the wild.
Verdict
Today item — known-exploited.
An unauthenticated attacker can upload arbitrary files to a ColdFusion server, achieving remote code execution. Active exploitation in the wild and high EPSS score (0.94) indicate immediate risk to unpatched systems.
01
Is it exploitable?
— the evidence, ranked above the scoreExploit available
Fully weaponized — public exploit code is cataloged for this vulnerability.We link the existence of the exploit; we do not host or redistribute payloads.
Reported exploitation
704 independent public reports of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2021-11-03).
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.9995 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
Affected: Adobe, ColdFusion. Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-434 Unrestricted File Upload — weakness family: Path traversal / file.CWE assignment from the public NVD record; the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
02
Who’s exploiting it?
— attribution turns risk into urgencyAttribution not established
No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.
03
Why it matters
— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board1
Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1
Attacker
I identify a ColdFusion instance and craft a malicious file upload request to bypass validation controls.
Business
Attackers gain initial access to web-facing infrastructure without authentication.
2
Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2
Attacker
I upload a web shell or executable payload through the unrestricted upload endpoint.
Business
Malicious code executes with the privileges of the ColdFusion application process.
3
Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3
Attacker
I execute arbitrary commands on the server to establish persistence and lateral movement.
Business
Complete compromise of the affected server and potential pivot to internal systems.
04
What to do
— defensible action- Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05