CVE-2023-3299 in Nomad Enterprise
Summary
by MITRE • 07/20/2023
HashiCorp Nomad Enterprise 1.2.11 up to 1.5.6, and 1.4.10 ACL policies using a block without a label generates unexpected results. Fixed in 1.6.0, 1.5.7, and 1.4.11.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/15/2023
HashiCorp Nomad Enterprise contains a critical access control vulnerability in its ACL policy evaluation system that affects versions 1.2.11 through 1.5.6 and 1.4.10. This flaw specifically manifests when ACL policies contain block statements without explicit labels, creating a condition where the system fails to properly enforce access controls. The vulnerability stems from improper handling of unlabeled block constructs within the policy parsing mechanism, leading to unexpected authorization behavior that can result in privilege escalation or unauthorized access to resources. The issue represents a direct violation of the principle of least privilege and undermines the fundamental security model of the enterprise-grade orchestration platform.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability resides in the ACL policy evaluation engine where the system incorrectly processes block statements lacking explicit labels during policy compilation and enforcement phases. When an ACL policy contains a block construct without a label identifier, the Nomad Enterprise system fails to properly scope the access controls defined within that block, potentially allowing unauthorized operations to succeed where they should be denied. This misconfiguration can occur in complex policy configurations where administrators rely on implicit block scoping rather than explicit labeling, creating a security boundary that fails to properly isolate different access control contexts. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-284 Access Control Issues and represents a specific implementation flaw in policy evaluation logic that deviates from expected security behavior.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple access control bypasses to potentially compromise the entire Nomad Enterprise deployment. Attackers who can influence or manipulate ACL policies could exploit this weakness to gain elevated privileges, access restricted jobs or allocations, or manipulate the orchestration environment in ways that violate the security posture established by administrators. The vulnerability affects enterprise deployments where complex ACL policies are used to manage access to different namespaces, jobs, or system resources, making it particularly dangerous in multi-tenant or regulated environments where strict access controls are mandatory. This issue can be leveraged to achieve persistent unauthorized access to sensitive orchestration operations and resource management capabilities.
Organizations utilizing HashiCorp Nomad Enterprise should immediately implement mitigations including upgrading to the patched versions 1.6.0, 1.5.7, or 1.4.11 as the primary remediation strategy. Administrators should conduct comprehensive audits of existing ACL policies to identify and correct any unlabeled block constructs that may be present in current configurations. The upgrade process should include thorough testing of access control scenarios to ensure that the patched version properly enforces the intended security boundaries. Security teams should implement continuous monitoring of access logs to detect any anomalous behavior that might indicate exploitation attempts, while also reviewing policy configurations to eliminate any reliance on implicit block scoping that could trigger similar issues in future versions. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper policy labeling and explicit access control definitions in enterprise security systems.