CVE-2024-52284 in Rancher
Summary
by MITRE • 09/02/2025
Unauthorized disclosure of sensitive data: Any user with `GET` or `LIST` permissions on `BundleDeployment` resources could retrieve Helm values containing credentials or other secrets.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/06/2025
This vulnerability exists within Kubernetes cluster environments where BundleDeployment resources are utilized for managing Helm chart deployments. The flaw stems from insufficient access control validation during resource enumeration operations, allowing attackers with minimal permissions to extract sensitive information from Helm values. The vulnerability specifically affects systems implementing the Kubernetes API server with proper RBAC controls but failing to enforce adequate data sanitization during list or get operations on BundleDeployment objects. When users possess GET or LIST permissions on these resources, they can inadvertently expose credential information, configuration secrets, or other sensitive data contained within Helm value files that are stored as part of the BundleDeployment specification. This represents a significant information disclosure risk that violates fundamental security principles of least privilege and data protection.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the Kubernetes admission control mechanisms failing to properly sanitize or filter sensitive data during API responses. When a user with appropriate RBAC permissions executes a GET or LIST operation against BundleDeployment resources, the API server returns complete resource definitions including Helm values that may contain passwords, API keys, tokens, or other confidential information. This occurs because the system does not validate whether the requesting user has elevated clearance to access such sensitive data within the resource metadata. The flaw essentially creates a data leakage channel where authorized users can access information beyond what their explicit permissions should permit, making it particularly dangerous in multi-tenant environments where different users have varying levels of access. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-200 (Information Exposure) and CWE-532 (Information Exposure Through Log Files) categories, with potential ATT&CK techniques including T1566 (Phishing) and T1071.004 (Application Layer Protocol: DNS) for data exfiltration.
The operational impact of CVE-2024-52284 extends beyond simple information disclosure to potentially enable more sophisticated attacks. An attacker who gains access to Helm values containing credentials can escalate privileges within the cluster, compromise other services, or extract additional sensitive data from the environment. This vulnerability is particularly concerning in cloud-native environments where Kubernetes clusters often contain numerous interconnected services, each potentially storing sensitive configuration data within Helm values. The exposure of credentials through BundleDeployment resources can lead to unauthorized access to databases, external APIs, or other critical infrastructure components. Organizations using GitOps practices or automated deployment pipelines are especially at risk since these systems frequently store secrets within Helm charts, making the vulnerability more exploitable in production environments. The impact is further amplified when considering that such vulnerabilities often remain undetected for extended periods, providing attackers with prolonged opportunities to extract valuable data.
Mitigation strategies should focus on implementing comprehensive data protection measures within Kubernetes environments. Organizations should enforce strict validation of resource access controls and implement proper data sanitization at the API layer to prevent unauthorized exposure of sensitive information. The recommended approach includes configuring RBAC policies to limit access to BundleDeployment resources to only those users who absolutely require such permissions, combined with automated scanning tools to identify and remediate sensitive data within Helm values. Additionally, implementing secrets management solutions such as HashiCorp Vault or Kubernetes native secrets with proper encryption can help reduce the attack surface. Organizations should also consider implementing admission controllers that can filter out sensitive data from API responses and enforce strict logging policies to detect potential abuse of this vulnerability. The implementation of these controls should align with industry standards such as NIST SP 800-53 and ISO 27001 requirements for information security, ensuring that proper governance frameworks are in place to prevent similar vulnerabilities from occurring in the future.