CVE-2024-0874 in CoreDNS
Summary
by MITRE • 04/25/2024
A flaw was found in coredns. This issue could lead to invalid cache entries returning due to incorrectly implemented caching.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/05/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-0874 resides within the CoreDNS software ecosystem, representing a critical flaw in the DNS caching mechanism that fundamentally undermines the integrity of cached responses. CoreDNS serves as a widely deployed DNS server implementation that handles millions of queries across various network infrastructures, making this vulnerability particularly concerning for organizations relying on proper DNS caching behavior. The flaw manifests when the caching implementation fails to properly validate or handle cache entries, potentially allowing stale or malformed responses to be served to clients. This issue directly impacts the reliability and security of DNS resolution services that depend on CoreDNS for their operational stability.
The technical root cause of CVE-2024-0874 stems from improper cache validation logic within CoreDNS's response handling mechanisms. When DNS queries are processed and cached, the system should maintain strict validation of entry freshness and content integrity to prevent serving outdated or corrupted data. However, the flawed implementation allows for invalid cache entries to be returned to clients, creating a scenario where legitimate DNS resolution can be compromised. This vulnerability operates at the intersection of CWE-200, which addresses improper output handling, and CWE-20, which covers input validation issues, as the system fails to properly validate both incoming data and cached responses. The improper caching behavior creates a pathway for potential DNS spoofing or cache poisoning attacks that could redirect traffic to malicious endpoints.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple performance degradation, as it fundamentally compromises the trustworthiness of DNS resolution services. Organizations relying on CoreDNS for internal network operations, web services, or external DNS resolution may experience unexpected behavior including failed connections, redirected traffic, or complete service unavailability when cached entries become corrupted or stale. The vulnerability affects both internal DNS infrastructure and public-facing DNS services, creating widespread potential for disruption. Attackers could exploit this flaw to manipulate DNS responses, potentially redirecting users to malicious websites or disrupting critical network services that depend on proper DNS resolution. The impact is particularly severe in environments where DNS caching is heavily utilized, as the vulnerability could compound over time as more invalid entries accumulate in the cache.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2024-0874 should prioritize immediate software updates from the CoreDNS maintainers, as this represents a security flaw that requires core architectural changes to address properly. Organizations should implement monitoring solutions to detect anomalous DNS behavior patterns that might indicate cache corruption or invalid entries being served. Network administrators should consider temporarily disabling or limiting DNS caching functionality while patches are deployed, though this approach may impact performance. The remediation process should include comprehensive testing of DNS resolution behavior after patch deployment to ensure that the caching mechanisms function correctly. Additionally, organizations should review their DNS infrastructure configurations to identify any custom caching policies that might exacerbate the vulnerability. Implementation of DNSSEC validation can provide additional protection layers, though it does not directly address the core caching flaw. This vulnerability highlights the critical importance of proper cache validation mechanisms in distributed systems and serves as a reminder of the potential security implications of seemingly benign infrastructure components. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this issue under T1566, representing credential access through network sniffing and manipulation, as the compromised DNS cache can be leveraged to redirect traffic and potentially gain unauthorized access to systems through manipulated DNS resolution.