CVE-2020-4053: Helm.sh/helm/v3 Path Traversal Vulnerability

LOW
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-qq3j-xp49-j73f
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CVSS 3.7
CWE-22
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-4053 is a LOW (CVSS 3.7) path traversal vulnerability (CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')) affecting Helm.sh/helm/v3 libraries in the Go ecosystem. The issue involves plugin archive directory traversal in helm. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 3.2.4.

CVE-2020-4053 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-4053
GHSA Identifier GHSA-qq3j-xp49-j73f
Severity LOW
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 3.7
CWE Classification CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
Affected Product Helm.sh/helm/v3
Package Ecosystem Go
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 3.7

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

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

How to Fix CVE-2020-4053

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: 3.2.4 
Upgrade helm.sh/helm/v3 to 3.2.4
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-2020-4053, 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 3.2.4), 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-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal'), where the product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory. 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

The Helm core maintainers have identified an information disclosure vulnerability in Helm 3.0.0-3.2.3. ### Impact A traversal attack is possible when installing Helm plugins from a tar archive over HTTP. It is possible for a malicious plugin author to inject a relative path into a plugin archive, and copy a file outside of the intended directory. Traversal Attacks are a form of a Directory Traversal that can be exploited by extracting files from an archive. The premise of the Directory Traversal vulnerability is that an attacker can gain access to parts of the file system outside of the target folder in which they should reside. The attacker can then overwrite executable files and either invoke them remotely or wait for the system or user to call them, thus achieving Remote Command Execution on the victim's machine. The vulnerability can also cause damage by overwriting configuration files or other sensitive resources, and can be exploited on both client (user) machines and servers. https://snyk.io/research/zip-slip-vulnerability ### Specific Go Packages Affected helm.sh/helm/v3/pkg/plugin/installer ### Patches This issue has been fixed in Helm 3.2.4 ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Open an issue in [the Helm repository](https://github.com/helm/helm/issues) * For security-specific issues, email us at [cncf-helm-security@lists.cncf.io](mailto:cncf-helm-security@lists.cncf.io)

CVE-2020-4053 Affected Helm.sh/helm/v3 Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
3.2.4
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
helm.sh/helm/v3
golang/helm.sh/helm/v3
Go
≥ 3.0.0
< 3.2.4
3.2.4

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/helm/helm/security/advisories/GHSA-qq3j-xp49-j73f
NVD — CVE-2020-4053 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-4053
Helm.sh/helm/v3 Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/helm/helm/pull/8317
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/helm/helm/commit/0ad800ef43d3b826f31a5ad8dfbb4fe05d143688
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/helm/helm/commit/b6bbe4f08bbb98eadd6c9cd726b08a5c639908b3
Helm.sh/helm/v3 Release RELEASE
https://github.com/helm/helm/releases/tag/v3.2.4

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-4053?
CVE-2020-4053 is a security vulnerability in Helm.sh/helm/v3 involving Plugin archive directory traversal in Helm under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal').
Which Helm.sh/helm/v3 versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 3.2.4 across affected packages: helm.sh/helm/v3.
What version fixes CVE-2020-4053?
Upgrading to 3.2.4 (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 3.2.4. Upgrade your dependency to 3.2.4 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-4053?
CVE-2020-4053 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 3.7 (LOW) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2020-4053?
CVE-2020-4053 is classified under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') (The product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory.).
How can I check Go dependencies for CVE-2020-4053?
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-qq3j-xp49-j73f",
  "modified" : "2024-02-13T16:33:08Z",
  "published" : "2021-06-23T18:14:36Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-4053" ],
  "summary" : "Plugin archive directory traversal in Helm",
  "details" : "The Helm core maintainers have identified an information disclosure\nvulnerability in Helm 3.0.0-3.2.3. \n\n### Impact\n\nA traversal attack is possible when installing Helm plugins from a tar\narchive over HTTP.  It is possible for a malicious plugin author to inject a relative\npath into a plugin archive, and copy a file outside of the intended directory.\n\nTraversal Attacks are a form of a Directory Traversal that can be exploited by\nextracting files from an archive. The premise of the Directory Traversal\nvulnerability is that an attacker can gain access to parts of the file system\noutside of the target folder in which they should reside. The attacker can\nthen overwrite executable files and either invoke them remotely or wait for\nthe system or user to call them, thus achieving Remote Command Execution on\nthe victim's machine. The vulnerability can also cause damage by overwriting\nconfiguration files or other sensitive resources, and can be exploited on both\nclient (user) machines and servers.\n\nhttps://snyk.io/research/zip-slip-vulnerability\n\n### Specific Go Packages Affected\nhelm.sh/helm/v3/pkg/plugin/installer\n\n### Patches\n\nThis issue has been fixed in Helm 3.2.4 \n\n### For more information\nIf you have any questions or comments about this advisory:\n* Open an issue in [the Helm repository](https://github.com/helm/helm/issues)\n* For security-specific issues, email us at [cncf-helm-security@lists.cncf.io](mailto:cncf-helm-security@lists.cncf.io)",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Go",
      "name" : "helm.sh/helm/v3"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "3.0.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "3.2.4"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/helm/helm/security/advisories/GHSA-qq3j-xp49-j73f"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-4053"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/helm/helm/pull/8317"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/helm/helm/commit/0ad800ef43d3b826f31a5ad8dfbb4fe05d143688"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/helm/helm/commit/b6bbe4f08bbb98eadd6c9cd726b08a5c639908b3"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/helm/helm/releases/tag/v3.2.4"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-22" ],
    "severity" : "LOW",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2021-05-24T20:57:17Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2020-06-16T22:15:10Z"
  }
}