Auth bypass in Istio
CVE-2022-21701
Istio is an open platform to connect, manage, and secure microservices. In versions 1.12.0 and 1.12.1 Istio is vulnerable to a privilege escalation attack. Users who have `CREATE` permission for `gateways.gateway.networking.k8s.io` objects can escalate this privilege to create other resources that they may not have access to, such as `Pod`. This vulnerability impacts only an Alpha level feature, the Kubernetes Gateway API. This is not the same as the Istio Gateway type (gateways.networking.istio.io), which is not vulnerable. Users are advised to upgrade to resolve this issue. Users unable to upgrade should implement any of the following which will prevent this vulnerability: Remove the gateways.gateway.networking.k8s.io CustomResourceDefinition, set PILOT_ENABLE_GATEWAY_API_DEPLOYMENT_CONTROLLER=true environment variable in Istiod, or remove CREATE permissions for gateways.gateway.networking.k8s.io objects from untrusted users.
Vulnerability class: Broken Access Control
EPSS: 0.008 (51.8th percentile) — read the EPSS interpretation.
CVSS v3 metric
CVSS v3 base score 5.0 (Medium). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L.
Affected products
- Istio — versions 1.12.0, >= 1.12.0, < 1.12.2, 1.12.1
Weakness classification (CWE)
Public proof-of-concept exploits
References
- security-advisories@github.com (x_refsource_MISC, Release Notes, Mitigation, Vendor Advisory)
- security-advisories@github.com (x_refsource_CONFIRM, Third Party Advisory)
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2022-21701?
- CVE-2022-21701 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Istio, classified under Incorrect Authorization. CVSS score: 5.0/10. Published 2022-01-19.
- How severe is CVE-2022-21701?
- Medium severity. CVSS v3 base score is 5.0 out of 10.
- Is CVE-2022-21701 known to be exploited?
- 2 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.