CVE-2022-3259 in OpenShift
Summary
by MITRE • 12/09/2022
Openshift 4.9 does not use HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) which may allow man-in-the-middle (MITM) attacks.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/23/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2022-3259 represents a critical security weakness in Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform version 4.9 where the system fails to implement HTTP Strict Transport Security mechanisms. This configuration flaw creates a significant exposure in the platform's security posture by leaving applications and services accessible via unencrypted HTTP connections, thereby undermining the integrity of secure communications between clients and the container platform. The absence of HSTS allows attackers to perform man-in-the-middle attacks by intercepting and modifying traffic between users and the OpenShift cluster components.
This vulnerability directly relates to CWE-311, which specifically addresses the absence of sensitive data protection mechanisms in web applications. The technical flaw manifests as the deliberate omission of the Strict-Transport-Security HTTP response header that should be implemented to enforce encrypted connections. Without this header, browsers cannot be instructed to automatically use HTTPS for all subsequent requests to the domain, leaving the system susceptible to various attack vectors including session hijacking, credential theft, and data manipulation. The impact is particularly severe in containerized environments where multiple applications and services may be exposed through the OpenShift platform, creating numerous potential entry points for attackers.
The operational implications of this vulnerability extend beyond simple protocol enforcement and represent a fundamental failure in the platform's security architecture. Attackers can exploit this weakness by positioning themselves in network traffic paths to intercept communications, potentially gaining access to sensitive operational data, user credentials, and application information. The vulnerability affects the entire OpenShift 4.9 ecosystem, including its web console, API endpoints, and associated services that may be accessible over HTTP. This exposure creates opportunities for attackers to perform credential harvesting attacks, as users may unknowingly transmit authentication tokens and sensitive information over unencrypted channels, potentially compromising entire cluster operations and data integrity.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should include immediate implementation of the Strict-Transport-Security header with appropriate configuration parameters across all OpenShift components. Organizations should configure the header with a minimum max-age value of at least 31536000 seconds (one year) and ensure the includeSubDomains directive is enabled to protect all subdomains. Additionally, the preloading directive should be considered for environments where the platform is consistently served over HTTPS. The remediation process requires careful coordination with existing security policies and should include comprehensive testing to ensure that legitimate HTTP traffic is properly redirected to HTTPS endpoints. Security teams should also implement network-level controls to enforce HTTPS usage and monitor for any attempts to access platform components over unencrypted connections, aligning with the security requirements outlined in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under the T1071.004 technique for application layer protocol usage. Organizations should prioritize upgrading to supported OpenShift versions that properly implement HSTS and maintain continuous monitoring of their security configurations to prevent similar issues from occurring in future deployments.