CVE-2023-31418: Elasticsearch Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-2cqf-6xv9-f22w
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CVSS 7.5
CWE-400
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2023-31418 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) remote code execution vulnerability (CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption) affecting Elasticsearch libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The issue involves elasticsearch vulnerable to uncontrolled resource consumption. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 7.17.13, 8.9.0.

CVE-2023-31418 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2023-31418
GHSA Identifier GHSA-2cqf-6xv9-f22w
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption
Affected Product Elasticsearch
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.5

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:H).

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 High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2023-31418

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

org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch fixed: 7.17.13 
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.elasticsearch</groupId>
    <artifactId>elasticsearch</artifactId>
    <version>7.17.13</version>
</dependency>
org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch fixed: 8.9.0 
<dependency>
    <groupId>org.elasticsearch</groupId>
    <artifactId>elasticsearch</artifactId>
    <version>8.9.0</version>
</dependency>
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

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

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.elasticsearch

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2023-31418, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.elasticsearch

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Elasticsearch in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 7.17.13), your application is affected.

Note: The mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.elasticsearch command inspects the resolved dependency graph declared in your project's POM files; it does not perform automated security scanning or inspect runtime dynamic classpaths. Always verify runtime container classpaths and shaded JARs.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption, where the product does not properly control the allocation and maintenance of a limited resource. In Elasticsearch, 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

An issue has been identified with how Elasticsearch handled incoming requests on the HTTP layer. An unauthenticated user could force an Elasticsearch node to exit with an OutOfMemory error by sending a moderate number of malformed HTTP requests. The issue was identified by Elastic Engineering and we have no indication that the issue is known or that it is being exploited in the wild.

CVE-2023-31418 Affected Elasticsearch Versions

2 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
7.17.138.9.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch
maven/org.elasticsearch/elasticsearch
Maven
< 7.17.13
7.17.13
org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch
maven/org.elasticsearch/elasticsearch
Maven
≥ 8.0.0
< 8.9.0
8.9.0

References

NVD — CVE-2023-31418 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-31418
Elasticsearch Security Information SECURITY
https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elasticsearch-8-9-0-7-17-13-security-update/343616
Elasticsearch Security Information SECURITY
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20231130-0005
Elasticsearch Security Information SECURITY
https://www.elastic.co/community/security

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2023-31418?
CVE-2023-31418 is a security vulnerability in Elasticsearch involving Elasticsearch vulnerable to Uncontrolled Resource Consumption under CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption.
Which Elasticsearch versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 7.17.13, 8.9.0 across affected packages: org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch.
What version fixes CVE-2023-31418?
Upgrading to 7.17.13, 8.9.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is elasticsearch affected?
Yes, org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch is affected in releases prior to 7.17.13, 8.9.0. Upgrade your dependency to 7.17.13, 8.9.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2023-31418?
CVE-2023-31418 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2023-31418?
CVE-2023-31418 is classified under CWE-400: Uncontrolled Resource Consumption (The product does not properly control the allocation and maintenance of a limited resource.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2023-31418?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree -Dincludes=org.elasticsearch'. 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-2cqf-6xv9-f22w",
  "modified" : "2023-10-30T15:10:36Z",
  "published" : "2023-10-26T18:30:23Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2023-31418" ],
  "summary" : "Elasticsearch vulnerable to Uncontrolled Resource Consumption",
  "details" : "An issue has been identified with how Elasticsearch handled incoming requests on the HTTP layer. An unauthenticated user could force an Elasticsearch node to exit with an OutOfMemory error by sending a moderate number of malformed HTTP requests. The issue was identified by Elastic Engineering and we have no indication that the issue is known or that it is being exploited in the wild.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "7.17.13"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "Maven",
      "name" : "org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "8.0.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "8.9.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-31418"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://discuss.elastic.co/t/elasticsearch-8-9-0-7-17-13-security-update/343616"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20231130-0005"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.elastic.co/community/security"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-400" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2023-10-30T15:10:36Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2023-10-26T18:15:08Z"
  }
}