CVE-2022-23525: Helm.sh/helm/v3 Denial of Service Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-53c4-hhmh-vw5q
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CVSS 5.3
CWE-476
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2022-23525 is a MODERATE (CVSS 5.3) denial of service vulnerability (CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference) affecting Helm.sh/helm/v3 libraries in the Go ecosystem. The issue involves helm vulnerable to denial of service through through repository index file. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 3.10.3.

CVE-2022-23525 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2022-23525
GHSA Identifier GHSA-53c4-hhmh-vw5q
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 5.3
CWE Classification CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference
Affected Product Helm.sh/helm/v3
Package Ecosystem Go
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 5.3

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality None (C:N)
Integrity None (I:N)
Availability Low (A:L)

How to Fix CVE-2022-23525

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Helm.sh/helm/v3 dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

helm.sh/helm/v3 fixed: 3.10.3 
Upgrade helm.sh/helm/v3 to 3.10.3
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

inspect dependencies for helm.sh/helm/v3

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your application is affected by CVE-2022-23525, inspect your project dependencies for Helm.sh/helm/v3:

inspect dependencies for helm.sh/helm/v3

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Helm.sh/helm/v3 in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 3.10.3), your application is affected.

Note: Verify declared build manifests and deployed runtime container environments.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference, where the product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is null. In Helm.sh/helm/v3, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

Fuzz testing, by Ada Logics and sponsored by the CNCF, identified input to functions in the `_repo_` package that can cause a segmentation violation. Applications that use functions from the `_repo_` package in the Helm SDK can have a Denial of Service attack when they use this package and it panics. ### Impact The `_repo_` package contains a handler that processes the index file of a repository. For example, the Helm client adds references to chart repositories where charts are managed. The `_repo_` package parses the index file of the repository and loads it into structures Go can work with. Some index files can cause array data structures to be created causing a memory violation. Applications that use the `_repo_` package in the Helm SDK to parse an index file can suffer a Denial of Service when that input causes a panic that cannot be recovered from. The Helm Client will panic with an index file that causes a memory violation panic. Helm is not a long running service so the panic will not affect future uses of the Helm client. ### Patches This issue has been resolved in 3.10.3. ### Workarounds SDK users can validate index files that are correctly formatted before passing them to the `_repo_` functions. ### For more information Helm's security policy is spelled out in detail in our [SECURITY](https://github.com/helm/community/blob/master/SECURITY.md) document. ### Credits Disclosed by Ada Logics in a fuzzing audit sponsored by CNCF.

CVE-2022-23525 Affected Helm.sh/helm/v3 Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
3.10.3
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
helm.sh/helm/v3
golang/helm.sh/helm/v3
Go
< 3.10.3
3.10.3

References

pkg.go.dev/vuln/go-2022-1165 WEB
https://pkg.go.dev/vuln/GO-2022-1165
GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/helm/helm/security/advisories/GHSA-53c4-hhmh-vw5q
NVD — CVE-2022-23525 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-23525
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/helm/helm/commit/638ebffbc2e445156f3978f02fd83d9af1e56f5b
Helm.sh/helm/v3 Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/helm/helm

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2022-23525?
CVE-2022-23525 is a security vulnerability in Helm.sh/helm/v3 involving Helm vulnerable to denial of service through through repository index file under CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference.
Which Helm.sh/helm/v3 versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 3.10.3 across affected packages: helm.sh/helm/v3.
What version fixes CVE-2022-23525?
Upgrading to 3.10.3 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is helm.sh/helm/v3 affected?
Yes, helm.sh/helm/v3 is affected in releases prior to 3.10.3. Upgrade your dependency to 3.10.3 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2022-23525?
CVE-2022-23525 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 5.3 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2022-23525?
CVE-2022-23525 is classified under CWE-476: NULL Pointer Dereference (The product dereferences a pointer that it expects to be valid but is NULL.).
How can I check Go dependencies for CVE-2022-23525?
Run the dependency tree command: 'inspect dependencies for helm.sh/helm/v3'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-53c4-hhmh-vw5q",
  "modified" : "2023-08-30T18:40:46Z",
  "published" : "2022-12-14T21:38:31Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2022-23525" ],
  "summary" : "Helm vulnerable to denial of service through through repository index file",
  "details" : "Fuzz testing, by Ada Logics and sponsored by the CNCF, identified input to functions in the `_repo_` package that can cause a segmentation violation. Applications that use functions from the `_repo_` package in the Helm SDK can have a Denial of Service attack when they use this package and it panics.\n\n### Impact\n\nThe `_repo_` package contains a handler that processes the index file of a repository. For example, the Helm client adds references to chart repositories where charts are managed. The `_repo_` package parses the index file of the repository and loads it into structures Go can work with. Some index files can cause array data structures to be created causing a memory violation.\n\nApplications that use the `_repo_` package in the Helm SDK to parse an index file can suffer a Denial of Service when that input causes a panic that cannot be recovered from.\n\nThe Helm Client will panic with an index file that causes a memory violation panic. Helm is not a long running service so the panic will not affect future uses of the Helm client.\n\n### Patches\n\nThis issue has been resolved in 3.10.3. \n\n### Workarounds\n\nSDK users can validate index files that are correctly formatted before passing them to the `_repo_` functions.\n\n### For more information\n\nHelm's security policy is spelled out in detail in our [SECURITY](https://github.com/helm/community/blob/master/SECURITY.md) document.\n\n### Credits\n\nDisclosed by Ada Logics in a fuzzing audit sponsored by CNCF.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Go",
      "name" : "helm.sh/helm/v3"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "3.10.3"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/helm/helm/security/advisories/GHSA-53c4-hhmh-vw5q"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-23525"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/helm/helm/commit/638ebffbc2e445156f3978f02fd83d9af1e56f5b"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/helm/helm"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://pkg.go.dev/vuln/GO-2022-1165"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-476" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2022-12-14T21:38:31Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2022-12-15T19:15:00Z"
  }
}