CVE-2024-56180: Critical Vulnerability in Apache EventMesh Allows Remote Code Execution through Deserialization of Untrusted Data

A recently disclosed vulnerability, CVE-2024-56180, has been found in the eventmesh-meta-raft plugin module in the Apache EventMesh project. This vulnerability allows attackers to remotely execute arbitrary code on affected systems by sending a specially crafted message through the Hessian deserialization RPC protocol. The vulnerability affects the master branch of the Apache EventMesh project on Windows, Linux, and macOS platforms, potentially causing severe security implications for users.

The Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) system has classified this vulnerability as CWE-502, which corresponds to the "Deserialization of Untrusted Data" category. In this blog post, we will discuss the details of the vulnerability, its potential impacts, and the steps users can take to mitigate the issue.

Exploit Details

The Apache EventMesh project is an open-source, event-driven messaging middleware that provides advanced capabilities such as event routing, partitioning, and high availability. The eventmesh-meta-raft plugin, which is part of the EventMesh project, is responsible for managing the metadata and configurations of various EventMesh nodes in a cluster.

The vulnerability in the eventmesh-meta-raft plugin arises due to the unsafe deserialization of untrusted data received over the Hessian RPC protocol. By crafting a specific message containing malicious code and sending it to a vulnerable EventMesh instance, an attacker can achieve remote code execution on the target system. This capability can be used by the attacker to compromise the affected systems, steal sensitive information or disrupt the normal operation of EventMesh clusters.

Original references:

1. Apache EventMesh GitHub Repository: https://github.com/apache/incubator-eventmesh
2. Apache EventMesh Issue Tracker: https://github.com/apache/incubator-eventmesh/issues/384
3. CVE-2024-56180 record on CVE Details: https://www.cvedetails.com/cve/CVE-2024-56180/

Below is a proof-of-concept code snippet demonstrating the exploitation of this vulnerability

import hessianlib
import socket

target_host = "192.168..100"  # Replace with target EventMesh instance IP
target_port = 808             # Replace with target Hessian RPC port

payload = '...'                 # Malicious code to be executed

# Pack payload using Hessian deserialization
packed_payload = hessianlib.dumps(payload)

# Send malicious payload to target host
with socket.create_connection((target_host, target_port)) as s:
    s.sendall(packed_payload)

Mitigation

To mitigate this vulnerability, users are encouraged to update their EventMesh deployments to the latest version in the project's master branch or switch to version 1.11., which includes the necessary patches for this issue. Additionally, users should ensure that only trusted sources have the ability to send messages to their EventMesh clusters.

In conclusion, CVE-2024-56180 is a critical vulnerability in the eventmesh-meta-raft plugin module in Apache EventMesh that allows attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected systems remotely. Users should update their EventMesh deployments to the latest version in the project's master branch or version 1.11. to protect themselves from potential security risks.

Timeline

Published on: 02/14/2025 14:15:32 UTC
Last modified on: 02/18/2025 15:15:16 UTC