CVE-2026-76984 Apache Software Foundation CVE debrief

Who should care

Apache Wicket users, developers, and administrators should be aware of this vulnerability and take steps to mitigate it. This includes upgrading to patched versions, reviewing and updating affected systems, and monitoring for suspicious activity. Operators, platform administrators, vulnerability management teams, and security teams should review the vulnerability and take necessary actions to protect their systems.

Technical summary

The CVE-2026-76984 vulnerability is caused by improper neutralization of input during web page generation in Apache Wicket. Specifically, the org.apache.wicket.markup.head.MetaDataHeaderItem generates <meta> and <link> header tags, but only escaped attribute names, not attribute values. This allows an attacker to influence attribute values and potentially inject malicious code. The issue affects multiple versions of Apache Wicket, and users are recommended to upgrade to patched versions. The affected versions include Apache Wicket versions from 8.0.0 through 8.18.0, from 9.0.0 through 9.23.0, and from 10.0.0 through 10.10.0, as well as older, unsupported releases from 6.17.0 onwards.

Defensive priority

Apache Wicket users should prioritize upgrading to patched versions to prevent potential XSS attacks.

Recommended defensive actions

• Upgrade to Apache Wicket version 8.19.0, 9.24.0, or 10.11.0
• Review and update affected systems to prevent potential XSS attacks
• Monitor for suspicious activity and implement compensating controls if necessary
• Confirm whether affected product deployments exist in managed environments and assign an owner for follow-up.
• Review the supplied official advisory or CVE record to validate affected scope, severity, and vendor guidance.
• Plan vendor-supported updates or mitigations through normal change control where exposure is confirmed.
• Check relevant monitoring, detection, and logs for exposed assets that need extra review.

Evidence notes

The CVE-2026-76984 issue affects Apache Wicket versions from 8.0.0 through 8.18.0, from 9.0.0 through 9.23.0, and from 10.0.0 through 10.10.0, as well as older, unsupported releases from 6.17.0 onwards. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 8.19.0, 9.24.0, or 10.11.0, which fix the issue. Evidence is limited, and further verification is required to confirm the full scope of affected systems.

Sources and references

Methodology and review provenance

AI-assisted synthesis based on stored public vulnerability evidence. System validation, approval state, and publication status do not by themselves establish human review of this revision. PatchSiren helps prioritize defensive review and does not prove exposure or remediation on any system.