CVE-2022-36103: Github.com/talos systems/talos Talos Worker Join Token Can Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-7hgc-php5-77qq
CVSS 7.2
CWE-732 CWE-863
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2022-36103 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.2) talos worker join token can vulnerability (CWE-732: Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource) affecting Github.com/talos systems/talos libraries in the Go ecosystem. The issue involves talos worker join token can be used to get elevated access level to the talos api. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.2.2.

CVE-2022-36103 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2022-36103
GHSA Identifier GHSA-7hgc-php5-77qq
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.2
CWE Classification CWE-732: Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource
Affected Product Github.com/talos systems/talos
Package Ecosystem Go
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.2

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

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

How to Fix CVE-2022-36103

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

github.com/talos-systems/talos fixed: 1.2.2
Upgrade github.com/talos-systems/talos to 1.2.2
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 github.com/talos-systems/talos

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your application is affected by CVE-2022-36103, inspect your project dependencies for Github.com/talos systems/talos:

inspect dependencies for github.com/talos-systems/talos

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Github.com/talos systems/talos in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.2.2), 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-732: Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource, where the product specifies permissions for a security-critical resource in a way that allows that resource to be read or modified by unintended actors. In Github.com/talos systems/talos, 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

### Impact Talos worker nodes use a join token to get accepted into the Talos cluster. A misconfigured Kubernetes environment may allow workloads to access the join token of the worker node. A malicious workload could then use the join token to construct a Talos CSR (certificate signing request). Due to improper validation while signing a worker node CSR, a Talos control plane node might issue a Talos certificate which allows full access to the Talos API to a worker node that presented a maliciously constructed CSR. Accessing the Talos API with full access on a control plane node might reveal sensitive information, which could allow full-level access to the cluster (Kubernetes and Talos PKI, etc.) In order to exploit the weakness, a Kubernetes workload would need to access the join token, and then construct a specific kind of Talos CSR in order to obtain a privileged certificate. The Talos API join token is stored in the machine configuration on the worker node. When configured correctly, Kubernetes workloads do not have access to the machine configuration, and thus cannot access the token, nor acquire elevated privileges. It is possible that users have misconfigured Kubernetes in such a way as to allow a workload to access the machine configuration and reveal the join token. Misconfigurations that may allow the machine configuration to be accessed on a worker node by the Kubernetes workload are: * allowing a `hostPath` mount to mount the machine config directly from the host filesystem (`hostPath` mounts should not be allowed for untrusted workloads, and are disabled by default in recent versions of Talos.) * reading machine configuration from a cloud metadata server from Kubernetes pods with host networking (on cloud platforms, when machine config is stored in the cloud metadata server, and the cloud metadata server doesn't provide enough protection to prevent access from non-host workloads) ### Patches The problem was fixed in Talos 1.2.2. ### Workarounds Enabling the [Pod Security Standards](https://www.talos.dev/v1.2/kubernetes-guides/configuration/pod-security/) mitigates the vulnerability by denying `hostPath` mounts and host networking by default in the [baseline](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/security/pod-security-standards/#baseline) policy. Talos enables Pod Security Admission plugin by default since [Talos v1.1.0](https://www.talos.dev/v1.1/introduction/what-is-new/#pod-security-admission). Clusters that don't run untrusted workloads are not affected. Clusters with correct Pod Security configurations which don't allow `hostPath` mounts, and secure access to cloud metadata server (or machine configuration is not supplied via cloud metadata server) are not affected. ### References * [Talos v1.2.2 release](https://github.com/siderolabs/talos/releases/tag/v1.2.2) * [Fixing commit](https://github.com/siderolabs/talos/commit/9eaf33f3f274e746ca1b442c0a1a0dae0cec088f) ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Email us at [security@siderolabs.com](mailto:security@siderolabs.com)

CVE-2022-36103 Affected Github.com/talos systems/talos Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
1.2.2
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
github.com/talos-systems/talos
Go
< 1.2.2
1.2.2

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2022-36103?
CVE-2022-36103 is a security vulnerability in Github.com/talos systems/talos involving Talos worker join token can be used to get elevated access level to the Talos API under CWE-732: Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource.
Which Github.com/talos systems/talos versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 1.2.2 across affected packages: github.com/talos-systems/talos.
What version fixes CVE-2022-36103?
Upgrading to 1.2.2 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is github.com/talos-systems/talos affected?
Yes, github.com/talos-systems/talos is affected in releases prior to 1.2.2. Upgrade your dependency to 1.2.2 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2022-36103?
CVE-2022-36103 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.2 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2022-36103?
CVE-2022-36103 is classified under CWE-732: Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource (The product specifies permissions for a security-critical resource in a way that allows that resource to be read or modified by unintended actors.).
How can I check Go dependencies for CVE-2022-36103?
Run the dependency tree command: 'inspect dependencies for github.com/talos-systems/talos'. 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
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-7hgc-php5-77qq",
  "modified" : "2022-09-19T20:23:28Z",
  "published" : "2022-09-16T17:21:09Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2022-36103" ],
  "summary" : "Talos worker join token can be used to get elevated access level to the Talos API",
  "details" : "### Impact\n\nTalos worker nodes use a join token to get accepted into the Talos cluster. A misconfigured Kubernetes environment may allow workloads to access the join token of the worker node. A malicious workload could then use the join token to construct a Talos CSR (certificate signing request). Due to improper validation while signing a worker node CSR, a Talos control plane node might issue a Talos certificate which allows full access to the Talos API to a worker node that presented a maliciously constructed CSR. Accessing the Talos API with full access on a control plane node might reveal sensitive information, which could allow full-level access to the cluster (Kubernetes and Talos PKI, etc.)\n\nIn order to exploit the weakness, a Kubernetes workload would need to access the join token, and then construct a specific kind of Talos CSR in order to obtain a privileged certificate. The Talos API join token is stored in the machine configuration on the worker node. When configured correctly, Kubernetes workloads do not have access to the machine configuration, and thus cannot access the token, nor acquire elevated privileges.\n\nIt is possible that users have misconfigured Kubernetes in such a way as to allow a workload to access the machine configuration and reveal the join token.  Misconfigurations that may allow the machine configuration to be accessed on a worker node by the Kubernetes workload are:\n\n* allowing a `hostPath` mount to mount the machine config directly from the host filesystem (`hostPath` mounts should not be allowed for untrusted workloads, and are disabled by default in recent versions of Talos.)\n* reading machine configuration from a cloud metadata server from Kubernetes pods with host networking (on cloud platforms, when machine config is stored in the cloud metadata server, and the cloud metadata server doesn't provide enough protection to prevent access from non-host workloads)\n\n### Patches\n\nThe problem was fixed in Talos 1.2.2.\n\n### Workarounds\n\nEnabling the [Pod Security Standards](https://www.talos.dev/v1.2/kubernetes-guides/configuration/pod-security/)  mitigates the vulnerability by denying `hostPath` mounts and host networking by default in the [baseline](https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/security/pod-security-standards/#baseline) policy. Talos enables Pod Security Admission plugin by default since [Talos v1.1.0](https://www.talos.dev/v1.1/introduction/what-is-new/#pod-security-admission).\n\nClusters that don't run untrusted workloads are not affected.\nClusters with correct Pod Security configurations which don't allow `hostPath` mounts, and secure access to cloud metadata server (or machine configuration is not supplied via cloud metadata server) are not affected.\n\n### References\n\n* [Talos v1.2.2 release](https://github.com/siderolabs/talos/releases/tag/v1.2.2)\n* [Fixing commit](https://github.com/siderolabs/talos/commit/9eaf33f3f274e746ca1b442c0a1a0dae0cec088f)\n\n### For more information\n\nIf you have any questions or comments about this advisory:\n\n* Email us at [security@siderolabs.com](mailto:security@siderolabs.com)\n",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Go",
      "name" : "github.com/talos-systems/talos"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.2.2"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/siderolabs/talos/security/advisories/GHSA-7hgc-php5-77qq"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-36103"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/siderolabs/talos/commit/9eaf33f3f274e746ca1b442c0a1a0dae0cec088f"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/siderolabs/talos"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/siderolabs/talos/releases/tag/v1.2.2"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-732", "CWE-863" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2022-09-16T17:21:09Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2022-09-13T17:15:00Z"
  }
}