Possible Apache Struts2 OGNL Content-Type Exploitation CVE-2017-5638 (via webserver)

PremiumReviewedSigma · High · v1
Category
webserver
Author
HuntRule
Published
2026-10-11
Updated
2026-10-11

ATT&CK techniques

Initial Access
  1. Recon

  2. Resource Dev

  3. Execution

  4. Persistence

  5. Priv Esc

  6. Defense Evasion

  7. Cred Access

  8. Discovery

  9. Lateral Movement

  10. Collection

  11. C2

  12. Exfiltration

  13. Impact

What it detects

This rule detects HTTP requests carrying an OGNL injection payload in the Content-Type header. The NKAbuse intrusion begins by exploiting the Struts2 vulnerability CVE-2017-5638, which smuggles an OGNL expression through a malformed Content-Type to run commands on the server, so this header content indicates attempted remote code execution against a public-facing web application.

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Possible Apache Struts2 OGNL Content-Type Exploitation CVE-2017-5638 (via webserver)
Pivot detection · T1190 · 9 related

Detection content is published as a reviewed draft. Tune thresholds and exclusions against your own telemetry before enabling this rule for alerting.