CVE-2026-46456

Analyzed Analyzed - Analysis Complete

Improper Input Validation in Apache Camel AWS2-SQS

Publication date: 2026-07-06

Last updated on: 2026-07-08

Assigner: Apache Software Foundation

Description

Improper Input Validation vulnerability in Apache Camel AWS2-SQS Component. The camel-aws2-sqs component map inbound message attributes into the Camel Exchange through a component-specific HeaderFilterStrategy. Sqs2HeaderFilterStrategy configured only an outbound filter (setOutFilterPattern, which blocks Camel*, breadcrumbId and org.apache.camel.* headers being written to the broker) but did not configure an inbound filter. As a result, when Sqs2Consumer copies each SQS MessageAttribute into the Exchange via HeaderFilterStrategy.applyFilterToExternalHeaders, DefaultHeaderFilterStrategy applied no inbound rule and treated every header name as not filtered - including Camel-internal control headers such as CamelHttpUri, CamelFileName or CamelSqlQuery - copying them unmodified onto the Camel message. Any principal able to send messages to the consumed SQS queue (for example a cross-account sender or a lower-privileged in-account component holding sqs:SendMessage) could therefore set arbitrary Camel control headers that influence the behaviour of downstream producers in the route (for example redirecting an HTTP producer, changing a file name, or overriding a query); the injected headers also persist across internal direct, seda and vm hops. The concrete downstream impact depends on which producers the route uses. This issue affects Apache Camel: from 4.0.0 before 4.14.8, from 4.15.0 before 4.18.3, from 4.19.0 before 4.21.0. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 4.21.0, which fixes the issue. If users are on the 4.14.x LTS releases stream, then they are suggested to upgrade to 4.14.8. If users are on the 4.18.x releases stream, then they are suggested to upgrade to 4.18.3. The fix adds an inbound HeaderFilterStrategy rule to Sqs2HeaderFilterStrategy that filters the Camel header namespace case-insensitively on inbound mapping, so sender-supplied Camel* / camel* headers are no longer copied into the Exchange. For deployments that cannot upgrade immediately, strip the Camel control headers from inbound messages before they reach any downstream producer (for example removeHeaders('Camel*') and removeHeaders('camel*') at the start of the route), and restrict who may send to the consumed SQS queue by applying least-privilege sqs:SendMessage permissions on the queue resource policy.

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Meta Information

Published

2026-07-06

Last Modified

2026-07-08

Generated

2026-07-26

AI Q&A

2026-07-06

EPSS Evaluated

2026-07-25

NVD

CVE-2026-46456

EUVD

EUVD-2026-41830

Affected Vendors & Products

Vendor	Product	Version / Range
apache	camel	From 4.0.0 (inc) to 4.14.8 (exc)
apache	camel	From 4.15.0 (inc) to 4.18.3 (exc)
apache	camel	From 4.19.0 (inc) to 4.21.0 (exc)

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE

KEV

CWE ID	Description
CWE-20	The product receives input or data, but it does not validate or incorrectly validates that the input has the properties that are required to process the data safely and correctly.

Attack-Flow Graph

Executive Summary

This vulnerability is an improper input validation issue in the Apache Camel camel-aws2-sqs component. It occurs because inbound message attributes from Amazon SQS are mapped into the Camel Exchange without proper filtering of headers. Specifically, the component's HeaderFilterStrategy only blocked certain headers on outbound messages but did not filter inbound headers. As a result, an attacker who can send messages to the SQS queue can inject arbitrary Camel control headers such as CamelHttpUri, CamelFileName, or CamelSqlQuery. These injected headers can influence the behavior of downstream components in the message route, potentially redirecting HTTP requests, changing file names, or overriding SQL queries.

Detection Guidance

This vulnerability involves the injection of arbitrary Camel control headers via inbound SQS message attributes. Detection involves monitoring messages sent to the affected SQS queues for suspicious or unexpected Camel control headers such as CamelHttpUri, CamelFileName, or CamelSqlQuery.

To detect exploitation attempts, you can inspect the messages in the SQS queue for headers starting with 'Camel' or 'camel'. This can be done by retrieving messages from the queue and examining their attributes.

Example AWS CLI command to receive messages and view their attributes:

aws sqs receive-message --queue-url <your-queue-url> --message-attribute-names All --max-number-of-messages 10

After retrieving messages, check if any message attributes include headers prefixed with 'Camel' or 'camel', which should not be present if the system is not vulnerable or properly mitigated.

Additionally, reviewing Apache Camel route logs for unexpected behavior or headers can help detect if injected headers are influencing downstream producers.

Impact Analysis

The impact of this vulnerability is that an attacker with permission to send messages to the affected SQS queue can manipulate the behavior of downstream producers in the Apache Camel route. This can lead to unauthorized redirection of HTTP requests, modification of file names, or alteration of SQL queries, depending on the route configuration. Such manipulation can disrupt normal application workflows, cause data corruption, or lead to unauthorized actions within the system.

Compliance Impact

The provided information does not explicitly address how this vulnerability impacts compliance with common standards and regulations such as GDPR or HIPAA.

Mitigation Strategies

To mitigate this vulnerability, you should upgrade Apache Camel to a fixed version: 4.14.8 if you are on the 4.14.x LTS stream, 4.18.3 if on the 4.18.x stream, or 4.21.0 for other versions.

If immediate upgrade is not possible, implement temporary workarounds by stripping Camel control headers from inbound messages before they reach any downstream producer. This can be done by removing headers matching 'Camel*' and 'camel*' at the start of the route (e.g., using removeHeaders('Camel*') and removeHeaders('camel*')).

Additionally, restrict who can send messages to the consumed SQS queue by applying least-privilege sqs:SendMessage permissions on the queue resource policy to prevent unauthorized header injection.

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