CVE-2024-42486: Cilium vulnerable to information leakage via incorrect ReferenceGrant update logic in Gateway API
Impact
Due to ReferenceGrant changes not being immediately propagated in Cilium's GatewayAPI controller, Gateway resources are able to access secrets in other namespaces after the associated ReferenceGrant has been revoked. This can lead to Gateways continuing to establish sessions using secrets that they should no longer have access to.
Patches
This issue was resolved in https://github.com/cilium/cilium/pull/34032.
This issue affects:
- Cilium v1.15 between v1.15.0 and v1.15.7 inclusive - Cilium v1.16.0
This issue has been patched in:
- Cilium v1.15.8 - Cilium v1.16.1
Workarounds
Any modification of a related Gateway/HTTPRoute/GRPCRoute/TCPRoute CRD (for example, adding any label to any of these resources) will trigger a reconciliation of ReferenceGrants on an affected cluster.
Acknowledgements
The Cilium community has worked together with members of Cure53 and Isovalent to prepare these mitigations. Special thanks to @sayboras for resolving this issue.
For more information
If you have any questions or comments about this advisory, please reach out on Slack.
If you think you have found a vulnerability affecting Cilium, we strongly encourage you to report it to our security mailing list at security@cilium.io. This is a private mailing list for the Cilium security team, and your report will be treated as top priority.
Other sources
Cilium is a networking, observability, and security solution with an eBPF-based dataplane. In versions on the 1.15.x branch prior to 1.15.8 and the 1.16.x branch prior to 1.16.1, ReferenceGrant changes are not correctly propagated in Cilium's GatewayAPI controller, which could lead to Gateway resources being able to access secrets for longer than intended, or to Routes having the ability to forward traffic to backends in other namespaces for longer than intended. This issue has been patched in Cilium v1.15.8 and v1.16.1. As a workaround, any modification of a related Gateway/HTTPRoute/GRPCRoute/TCPRoute CRD (for example, adding any label to any of these resources) will trigger a reconciliation of ReferenceGrants on an affected cluster.
— MITRE
Affected Software
Remediation
Patch Available
Event History
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the severity of CVE-2024-42486?
CVE-2024-42486 has a high severity rating due to its impact on security by allowing unauthorized access to secrets across namespaces.
How do I fix CVE-2024-42486?
To fix CVE-2024-42486, upgrade to Cilium version 1.15.8 or 1.16.1, as these versions contain the necessary security patches.
What is the root cause of CVE-2024-42486?
The root cause of CVE-2024-42486 stems from ReferenceGrant changes not being immediately propagated in Cilium's GatewayAPI controller.
Which Cilium versions are affected by CVE-2024-42486?
Cilium versions 1.15.0 to 1.15.8 and 1.16.0 are affected by CVE-2024-42486.
What are the potential consequences of CVE-2024-42486?
The potential consequences of CVE-2024-42486 include unauthorized access to sensitive secrets due to improper revocation of ReferenceGrant controls.