RCE: Spring Tools for Eclipse 5.2.0 Stores DevTools Secret in Cleartext
CVE-2026-59327 Published on July 30, 2026
Cleartext Storage of Spring Boot DevTools Remote Secret in Eclipse Launch Configurations
Spring Tools for Eclipse stores the Spring Boot DevTools remote secret (spring.devtools.remote.secret) as a plain string attribute on the "Spring Boot DevTools Client" launch configuration. Eclipse persists launch configuration attributes as cleartext XML, either to workspace metadata or, if the user marks the configuration as a shared file, directly into the project tree where it can be committed to version control. This secret is the sole credential protecting the DevTools remote restart/reload endpoint, which accepts and executes arbitrary class bytes on the target application. Anyone able to read the .launch file (via filesystem access, a workspace backup, or a shared VCS repository) can extract the secret and use it to achieve remote code execution against the associated Spring Boot application.
Affected Spring Products and Versions:
Spring Tools for Eclipse: 5.2.0 and earlier
Vulnerability Analysis
CVE-2026-59327 can be exploited with local system access, requires user interaction and a small amount of user privileges. This vulnerability is consided to have a high level of attack complexity. The potential impact of an exploit of this vulnerability is considered to have a high impact on confidentiality, with no impact on integrity and availability.
Weakness Type
Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information
The application stores sensitive information in cleartext within a resource that might be accessible to another control sphere. Because the information is stored in cleartext, attackers could potentially read it. Even if the information is encoded in a way that is not human-readable, certain techniques could determine which encoding is being used, then decode the information.
Products Associated with CVE-2026-59327
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Affected Versions
Spring Tools for Eclipse:- Before and including 5.2.0 is affected.