CVE-2013-6446 in CDH
Summary
by MITRE
The JobHistory Server in Cloudera CDH 4.x before 4.6.0 and 5.x before 5.0.0 Beta 2, when using MRv2/YARN with HTTP authentication, allows remote authenticated users to obtain sensitive job information by leveraging failure to enforce job ACLs.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/11/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2013-6446 affects the JobHistory Server component within Cloudera CDH versions 4.x prior to 4.6.0 and 5.x prior to 5.0.0 Beta 2. This issue specifically manifests when the system operates using MRv2/YARN framework with HTTP authentication enabled. The core problem lies in the insufficient enforcement of access control lists for jobs, creating a critical security gap that allows remote authenticated users to access sensitive job information that should otherwise be restricted. This vulnerability represents a significant failure in the authorization mechanisms that protect job data within the Hadoop ecosystem, particularly affecting organizations that rely on Cloudera's distribution for their big data processing needs.
The technical flaw stems from the JobHistory Server's inadequate implementation of job access control lists, which are essential for maintaining data confidentiality and integrity in distributed computing environments. When HTTP authentication is enabled, the system should enforce strict access controls to ensure that users can only view job information for which they have proper authorization. However, the vulnerability allows authenticated users to bypass these controls and obtain sensitive job details including job configurations, resource usage patterns, and potentially proprietary data processed by the system. This represents a clear violation of the principle of least privilege and demonstrates a failure in the security architecture that should prevent unauthorized access to job metadata.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as job history data often contains sensitive operational information that could be exploited by malicious actors. The compromised job information may include detailed resource consumption patterns, job scheduling details, and potentially confidential business data processed through the Hadoop cluster. Attackers could leverage this information to understand system behavior, identify potential attack vectors, or gain insights into organizational data processing workflows. The vulnerability affects organizations using Cloudera CDH in production environments where job history data contains sensitive information, making it particularly concerning for enterprises in regulated industries such as finance, healthcare, or government sectors where data protection is paramount.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including upgrading to Cloudera CDH versions 4.6.0 or 5.0.0 Beta 2 where this vulnerability has been addressed. The fix involves proper enforcement of job access controls and the implementation of robust ACL mechanisms that ensure only authorized users can access specific job information. Security teams should also conduct comprehensive audits of their job history server configurations to verify that access controls are properly implemented and that no unauthorized users have access to sensitive job data. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-284 which addresses improper access control and relates to ATT&CK technique T1005 for data from local system, as it enables unauthorized access to sensitive job information stored in the history server. Additionally, the issue demonstrates the importance of proper authentication and authorization controls in distributed computing environments, emphasizing the need for security-by-design principles in big data platforms to prevent such information disclosure vulnerabilities from occurring in production systems.