CVE-2024-45041

CVE-2024-45041 is a high-severity vulnerability in External-secrets External Secrets Operator with a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.3. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-732.

Key facts

Description

External Secrets Operator is a Kubernetes operator that integrates external secret management systems. The external-secrets has a deployment called default-external-secrets-cert-controller, which is bound with a same-name ClusterRole. This ClusterRole has "get/list" verbs of secrets resources. It also has path/update verb of validatingwebhookconfigurations resources. This can be used to abuse the SA token of the deployment to retrieve or get ALL secrets in the whole cluster, capture and log all data from requests attempting to update Secrets, or make a webhook deny all Pod create and update requests. This vulnerability is fixed in 0.10.2.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2024-45041?
External Secrets Operator is a Kubernetes operator that integrates external secret management systems. The external-secrets has a deployment called default-external-secrets-cert-controller, which is bound with a same-name ClusterRole. This ClusterRole has "get/list" verbs of secrets resources. It also has path/update verb of validatingwebhookconfigurations resources. This can be used to abuse the SA token of the deployment to retrieve or get ALL secrets in the whole cluster, capture and log all data from requests attempting to update Secrets, or make a webhook deny all Pod create and update requests. This vulnerability is fixed in 0.10.2.
How severe is CVE-2024-45041?
CVE-2024-45041 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 8.3, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity low, and availability high.
Is CVE-2024-45041 being actively exploited?
It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (44th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2024-45041?
CVE-2024-45041 affects External-secrets External Secrets Operator. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2024-45041?
Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
Does CVE-2024-45041 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?
Yes. CVE-2024-45041 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2024-2861.
When was CVE-2024-45041 published?
CVE-2024-45041 was published on 2024-09-09 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (1)

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