#VU56790 Information Exposure Through Timing Discrepancy in Apache Kafka - CVE-2021-38153

Vulnerability identifier: #VU56790

Vulnerability risk: Low

CVSSv4.0: 4.1 [CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/U:Clear]

CVE-ID: CVE-2021-38153

CWE-ID: CWE-208

Exploitation vector: Local

Exploit availability: No

Vulnerable software:
Apache Kafka
Client/Desktop applications / Messaging software

Vendor: Apache Foundation

Description

The vulnerability allows a local user to escalate privileges on the system.

the vulnerability exists due to some components in Apache Kafka use "Arrays.equals" to validate a password or key, which is vulnerable to timing attacks. A local user can abuse the "Arrays.equals" to brute force access credentials and escalate privileges on the system.

Mitigation
Install updates from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

Apache Kafka: 2.0.0 - 2.0.1, 2.1.0 - 2.1.1, 2.2.0 - 2.2.2, 2.3.0 - 2.3.1, 2.4.0 - 2.4.1, 2.5.0 - 2.5.1, 2.6.0 - 2.6.2, 2.7.0 - 2.7.1, 2.8.0

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External links
https://seclists.org/oss-sec/2021/q3/184
https://kafka.apache.org/cve-list

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Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

No. This vulnerability can be exploited locally. The attacker should have authentication credentials and successfully authenticate on the system.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability.