CVE-2026-31377 in Doris
Summary
by MITRE • 09/23/2026
An Improper Authentication vulnerability in the Apache Doris Frontend (FE) meta service allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to access internal metadata service endpoints.
The affected endpoints relied on client-supplied node information for authentication without providing sufficient authentication of the requesting party. Under certain network configurations, a remote attacker may be able to bypass the intended access control and access internal FE metadata interfaces, potentially exposing sensitive cluster information.
This issue affects Apache Doris: from 2.0.0 through 2.0.*, from 2.1.0 through 2.1.*, from 3.0.0 through 3.0.*, from 3.1.0 through 3.1.*, from 4.0.0 before 4.0.8, and from 4.1.0 before 4.1.4. Versions 1.2.x and earlier are not affected by this header-trust vulnerability.
Users are recommended to upgrade to a fixed release (4.0.8 or 4.1.4), which fixes the issue.
If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/23/2026
The Apache Doris Frontend meta service contains an improper authentication flaw that permits unauthenticated remote attackers to access internal metadata endpoints, representing a critical failure in identity verification mechanisms within distributed database architectures. This vulnerability stems from the system's reliance on client-supplied node information for establishing trust without performing sufficient validation of the requesting party's actual identity or authorization status. In many modern cloud-native and containerized deployments, services often communicate using trusted network segments where internal IP addresses are assumed to be safe sources of requests. However, when this assumption is not strictly enforced through cryptographic verification or robust access control lists, an attacker can exploit these trust relationships by spoofing valid node identifiers or manipulating request headers to masquerade as a legitimate cluster member. This specific technical flaw aligns with CWE-287, which categorizes improper authentication as the failure of a system to correctly verify identity before granting access, and it maps directly to MITRE ATT&CK technique T1078, specifically valid accounts or internal cloud credentials used for lateral movement and data exfiltration within enterprise environments.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe due to the sensitive nature of metadata stored in Apache Doris clusters. Metadata includes critical structural information such as table schemas, partition definitions, replication configurations, and potentially user role assignments. Unauthorized access to these interfaces allows an attacker to map out the entire data infrastructure without triggering typical intrusion detection alerts associated with brute-force attacks or SQL injection attempts. By bypassing intended access controls under certain network configurations where internal traffic is not strictly segmented or authenticated at the application layer, attackers can extract sensitive cluster information that serves as a foundation for further exploitation. This exposure facilitates subsequent attacks such as privilege escalation, data manipulation, or denial of service by altering critical configuration parameters remotely. The risk is particularly acute in multi-tenant environments where metadata leakage could lead to cross-tenant data visibility violations and regulatory non-compliance regarding data privacy standards like GDPR or HIPAA.
The scope of this vulnerability encompasses a wide range of Apache Doris versions, indicating that the underlying architectural design for node authentication has been consistently vulnerable across multiple major releases. Specifically, affected systems include version 2.0.x through 2.1., as well as all iterations from 3.0.0 up to 3.1. and early builds of the 4.x series prior to specific patch levels. Versions 4.0.0 before 4.0.8 and versions 4.1.0 before 4.1.4 are confirmed vulnerable, while earlier legacy systems in the 1.2.x branch remain unaffected due to differences in their header-trust implementation or network isolation strategies. This broad impact spectrum underscores the necessity for organizations running these distributed analytics engines to conduct immediate inventory assessments and prioritize patching efforts based on exposure levels. The persistence of this flaw across major version updates suggests that remediation requires more than a simple configuration change but rather a fundamental update to the authentication logic within the Frontend service codebase.
To mitigate this risk, users are strongly advised to upgrade immediately to fixed releases, specifically Apache Doris 4.0.8 or 4.1.4 and any subsequent versions that incorporate these security patches. These updates address the root cause by implementing stricter validation of client-supplied node information and ensuring that authentication checks cannot be bypassed through header manipulation alone. In addition to upgrading software, organizations should implement defense-in-depth strategies such as network segmentation to isolate Frontend nodes from untrusted networks, enforce mutual TLS for internal service-to-service communication, and deploy web application firewalls or API gateways that validate request origins against known legitimate node IP ranges. Regular security audits focusing on identity management practices and continuous monitoring of metadata access logs will further reduce the window of exposure and ensure rapid detection of any attempted exploitation activities targeting these critical infrastructure components.