CVE-2021-28131: Impala logs contain secrets

Published Jul 22, 2021
·
Updated

Impala sessions use a 16 byte secret to verify that the session is not being hijacked by another user. However, these secrets appear in the Impala logs, therefore Impala users with access to the logs can use another authenticated user's sessions with specially constructed requests. This means the attacker is able to execute statements for which they don't have the necessary privileges otherwise. Impala deployments with Apache Sentry or Apache Ranger authorization enabled may be vulnerable to privilege escalation if an authenticated attacker is able to hijack a session or query from another authenticated user with privileges not assigned to the attacker. Impala deployments with audit logging enabled may be vulnerable to incorrect audit logging as a user could undertake actions that were logged under the name of a different authenticated user. Constructing an attack requires a high degree of technical sophistication and access to the Impala system as an authenticated user. Mitigation: If an Impala deployment uses Apache Sentry, Apache Ranger or audit logging, then users should upgrade to a version of Impala with the fix for IMPALA-10600. The Impala 4.0 release includes this fix. This hides session secrets from the logs to eliminate the risk of any attack using this mechanism. In lieu of an upgrade, restricting access to logs that expose secrets will reduce the risk of an attack. Restricting access to the Impala deployment to trusted users will also reduce the risk of an attack. Log redaction techniques can be used to redact secrets from the logs.

Affected Software

1 affected component
Apache Impala<4.0.0

Event History

Jul 22, 2021
CVE Published
via MITRE·10:05 AM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·10:05 AM
DescriptionWeakness

Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is the severity of CVE-2021-28131?

CVE-2021-28131 is considered a high severity vulnerability due to the risk of session hijacking.

2

How do I fix CVE-2021-28131?

To mitigate CVE-2021-28131, upgrade to Apache Impala version 4.0.0 or later to eliminate the exposure of session secrets in logs.

3

What types of systems are affected by CVE-2021-28131?

CVE-2021-28131 affects Apache Impala versions prior to 4.0.0.

4

Can CVE-2021-28131 lead to unauthorized access?

Yes, CVE-2021-28131 can allow attackers with access to logs to authenticate using another user's session.

5

Are there any known exploits for CVE-2021-28131?

As of now, there are no widely reported exploits for CVE-2021-28131, but the risk of session hijacking remains a concern.

Contact

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