Security Bulletin: IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service is affected by a containerd security vulnerability (CVE-2022-23648)

Security Bulletin

Summary

IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service is affected by a security vulnerability found in containerd where specially-crafted image configuration could gain access to read-only copies of arbitrary files and directories on the host. This may bypass any policy-based enforcement on container setup (including a Kubernetes Pod Security Policy) and expose potentially sensitive information (CVE-2022-23648).

Vulnerability Details

CVEID: CVE-2022-23648
Description: containerd could allow a remote attacker to obtain sensitive information, caused by a flaw in the CRI implementation. By using a specially-crafted image configuration, an attacker could exploit this vulnerability to access to read-only copies of arbitrary files and directories on the host system, and use this information to launch further attacks against the affected system.
CVSS Base Score: 7.5
CVSS Temporal Score: https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/220823 for more information
CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N)

Affected Products and Versions

IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service 1.23-1.23.4_1521
IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service 1.22-1.22.7_1542
IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service 1.21-1.21.10_1551
IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service 1.20-1.20.15_1572
IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service 1.5-1.19

Remediation/Fixes

Updates for IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service cluster worker nodes at versions 1.20 or later are available that fix this vulnerability. Customers must update worker nodes created before the fix was available to address the vulnerability. See updating worker nodes for details on updating worker nodes. To verify your cluster worker nodes have been updated, use the following IBM Cloud CLI command to confirm the currently running versions:

ibmcloud ks workers --cluster <cluster name or ID>

If the versions are at one of the following patch levels or later, the cluster worker nodes have the fix:

1.23.4_1522
1.22.7_1543
1.21.10_1552
1.20.15_1573

Customers running IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service clusters at version 1.19 must upgrade to version 1.20. Please review the documentation before starting an upgrade since additional actions may be required.

Customers running IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service clusters at version 1.18 or earlier must create a new cluster and deploy their apps to the new cluster.

IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service versions 1.19 and earlier are no longer supported, and version 1.20 is deprecated. See the IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service version information and update actions documentation for more information about Kubernetes versions and version support policies.

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References

Complete CVSS v3 Guide
On-line Calculator v3

Off

Containerd Security Announcement for CVE-2022-23648

*The CVSS Environment Score is customer environment specific and will ultimately impact the Overall CVSS Score. Customers can evaluate the impact of this vulnerability in their environments by accessing the links in the Reference section of this Security Bulletin.

Disclaimer

Review the IBM security bulletin disclaimer and definitions regarding your responsibilities for assessing potential impact of security vulnerabilities to your environment.

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Tips

Security Bulletin: IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service is affected by a containerd security vulnerability (CVE-2022-23648)