CVE-2024-4436: Incomplete Fix for etcd Package in Red Hat OpenStack Platform - How to Identify and Mitigate the Vulnerability

A recent vulnerability (CVE-2024-4436) has been discovered, affecting the etcd package distributed with the Red Hat OpenStack platform. This vulnerability is due to an incomplete fix for CVE-2022-41723 and occurs because the etcd package in the Red Hat OpenStack platform is using http://golang.org/x/net/http2, instead of the one provided by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) versions. As a result, the package needs to be updated at compile time. In this post, we will discuss the nature of this vulnerability, provide a code snippet illustrating the issue, and offer guidance on how to address it.

Background

Before delving into the details of the vulnerability, it's crucial to provide some context on the etcd package and its role in the Red Hat OpenStack platform. etcd is a distributed key-value store used by Kubernetes and other distributed systems for storage and retrieval of configuration data. It is a critical component of the Red Hat OpenStack platform as it serves as a central data store for many services.

The Vulnerability (CVE-2024-4436)

The incomplete fix for (CVE-2022-41723) is traced back to the use of http://golang.org/x/net/http2 instead of the native http2 package provided by RHEL. This package is being used in the etcd distributed with the Red Hat OpenStack platform, and because it relies on a vulnerable version, attackers may be able to exploit this vulnerability and possibly obtain sensitive information or take control of a system.

The associated code snippet highlighting the issue is as follows

import (
    // ...
    "golang.org/x/net/http2"
    // ...
)

func main() {
    // ...
    http2.ConfigureTransport(transport)
    // ...
}

This code snippet demonstrates the use of the golang.org/x/net/http2 package instead of the native one provided by RHEL. Consequently, this opens the door for potential exploitation of the vulnerability.

Original References

For further information on the vulnerability, you can refer to the original sources discussing the issue:

1. CVE-2024-4436 Details: https://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2024-4436
2. Red Hat OpenStack Platform: https://www.redhat.com/en/technologies/cloud-computing/openstack
3. Red Hat Enterprise Linux: https://www.redhat.com/en/technologies/linux-platforms/enterprise-linux

How to Address the Vulnerability

In order to address this vulnerability, the etcd package must be updated at compile time with the native http2 package provided by RHEL instead of the one from golang.org. The following steps can be taken to do this:

Replace the import statement in the affected code

import (
    // ...
    "net/http/http2"
    // ...
)

Conclusion

The discovery of the CVE-2024-4436 vulnerability in the etcd package distributed with the Red Hat OpenStack platform underscores the importance of using the correct dependencies when building software. By identifying and addressing these vulnerabilities, developers can improve the overall security of the software they provide and ensure a safer environment for their users.

Timeline

Published on: 05/08/2024 09:15:09 UTC
Last modified on: 07/25/2024 05:09:40 UTC