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Canary Exploit Tool: Identify Servers Vulnerable to Apache Parquet Flaw

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By Tom Grant
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Canary Exploit Tool: Identify Servers Vulnerable to Apache Parquet Flaw

TL;DR

F5 Labs has released a proof-of-concept (PoC) tool, “Canary Exploit,” to identify servers vulnerable to the critical Apache Parquet flaw CVE-2025-30065. This tool assists developers and security teams in assessing and mitigating risks associated with this vulnerability, which could lead to remote code execution.

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F5 Labs Releases Canary Exploit Tool for Apache Parquet Vulnerability

F5 Labs has released a proof-of-concept (PoC) tool to identify servers vulnerable to the critical Apache Parquet flaw, tracked as CVE-2025-30065. This tool, named “Canary Exploit,” is available on F5 Labs’ GitHub repository.

Understanding Apache Parquet and the Vulnerability

Apache Parquet is a columnar storage file format optimized for use with large-scale data processing frameworks such as Apache Hadoop, Apache Spark, and Apache Drill. The vulnerability, CVE-2025-30065, affects Apache Parquet’s Java Library and allows for remote code execution (RCE) due to a deserialization of untrusted data issue.

Impact and Exploitation

The vulnerability affects systems that import Parquet files, especially from untrusted sources. Versions 1.15.0 and earlier are vulnerable, with the flaw traced back to version 1.8.0. This impacts big-data frameworks and custom applications using Parquet.

Key potential exploits include:

  • Taking control of the system: Attackers could run any commands or software, effectively gaining control.
  • Stealing or tampering with data: Sensitive information could be accessed, copied, or modified.
  • Installing malware: Attackers might deploy ransomware, cryptominers, or other malicious software.
  • Disrupting services: Attackers could shut down services or corrupt data, causing denial of service and business downtime 1.

Mitigation and Protection

To protect against CVE-2025-30065, users should upgrade Apache Parquet Java to version 1.15.1 or later. If upgrading is not possible, avoid or validate Parquet files from untrusted sources, implement input validation, and enable monitoring and logging to detect suspicious behavior.

Canary Exploit Tool Details

The Canary Exploit tool generates a Parquet/Avro file that triggers object instantiation of a class in Java (javax.swing.JEditorKit). This instantiation has the side effect of making an HTTP GET request, which can be used to test for the vulnerability.

F5 Labs created this tool to help developers and security teams quickly assess if their systems are affected by critical flaws, reducing response time in complex environments with hidden dependencies 2.

Conclusion

While the vulnerability is severe, real-world exploitation is considered difficult. The tool provides a means to test and ensure systems are patched and properly configured. It is crucial for organizations to address this issue promptly to mitigate potential risks.

For further insights, check:

References

  1. Endor Labs (April 2025). “Critical RCE Vulnerability in Apache Parquet CVE-2025-30065 - Advisory and Analysis”. Endor Labs. ↩︎

  2. F5 Labs (May 2025). “Canary Exploit Tool for CVE-2025-30065 Apache Parquet Avro Vulnerability”. F5 Labs. ↩︎

Cybersecurity, Vulnerabilities
cybersecurity threat intelligence apache parquet
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