oauthenticator: Improper Authorization
CVE-2024-29033 is a critical-severity improper authorization vulnerability in oauthenticator from Jupyterhub, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.1 out of 10. It can be exploited remotely over the network by an unauthenticated attacker, without any action from a user. Affected oauthenticator versions: < 16.3.0. The record does not name a fixed version, so check the vendor advisory. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.59% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
Critical severity: a successful attack would have severe impact.
What to do
- Check which version of oauthenticator you run against the affected versions below, and install the vendor's latest release.
- Read the advisory on github.com for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
- Until you can update, restrict network access to the affected service so it is not reachable from untrusted networks.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jupyterhub | oauthenticator | < 16.3.0 | Not stated |
Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- NetworkCan be exploited remotely over a network, including the internet.
- Attack complexity
- LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
- Privileges required
- NoneNo account or login is needed.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- HighData or code can be modified at will.
- Availability
- NoneAvailability is not affected.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N. Scored by NVD.
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.5 | High | CNA (github.com) |
| CVSS 3.1 | 9.1 | Critical | NVD |
Official description
OAuthenticator provides plugins for JupyterHub to use common OAuth providers, as well as base classes for writing one's own Authenticators with any OAuth 2.0 provider. `GoogleOAuthenticator.hosted_domain` is used to restrict what Google accounts can be authorized access to a JupyterHub. The restriction is intented to be to Google accounts part of one or more Google organization verified to control specified domain(s). Prior to version 16.3.0, the actual restriction has been to Google accounts with emails ending with the domain. Such accounts could have been created by anyone which at one time was able to read an email associated with the domain. This was described by Dylan Ayrey (@dxa4481) in this [blog post] from 15th December 2023). OAuthenticator 16.3.0 contains a patch for this issue. As a workaround, restrict who can login another way, such as `allowed_users` or `allowed_google_groups`.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Improper Authorization
The product does not perform or incorrectly performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Divide the product into anonymous, normal, privileged, and administrative areas. Reduce the attack surface by carefully mapping roles with data and functionality. Use role-based access control (RBAC) to enforce the roles at the appropriate boundaries. Note that this approach may not protect against horizontal authorization, i.e., it will not protect a user from attacking others with the same role.
- Ensure that you perform access control checks related to your business logic. These checks may be different than the access control checks that you apply to more generic resources such as files, connections, processes, memory, and database records. For example, a database may restrict access for medical records to a specific database user, but each record might only be intended to be accessible to the patient and the patient's doctor.
- Use a vetted library or framework that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid. For example, consider using authorization frameworks such as the JAAS Authorization Framework and the OWASP ESAPI Access Control feature.
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: partial).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Patches and release notes
Third-party and government advisories
- trufflesecurity.com/blog/google-oauth-is-broken-sort-ofPress/Media Coverage, Technical Description, Third Party Advisory
Other vulnerabilities in oauthenticator
- 8.8 High severity
- 8.1 High severity
Recent Improper Authorization vulnerabilities
- 9.1 Critical severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 7.3 High severity
- 8.8 High severity
- 9.6 Critical severity
- 7.5 High severity
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