CVE-2024-28180 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting the go-jose package, which implements the Javascript Object Signing and Encryption standards. This vulnerability allows attackers to exploit the decompression process of data, leading to excessive memory and CPU consumption when decompressing data using the Decrypt or DecryptMulti functions. The vulnerability has been addressed in versions 4.0.1, 3.0.3, and 2.6.3.
The CVSS 3.1 score for this vulnerability is 4.3, categorized under the medium severity range. It is crucial for organizations utilizing affected versions to prioritize remediation due to potential risks of service disruption and resource exhaustion.
Currently, there is no known public exploit for this vulnerability, and it has not been categorized as actively exploited in the wild. However, the nature of the problem, which involves resource consumption, could lead to denial-of-service scenarios if left unaddressed.
Organizations should prioritize patching immediately to mitigate risks associated with this vulnerability and ensure the reliable operation of their applications.
Vulnerability Details
The official description of CVE-2024-28180 states that an attacker could send a JWE containing compressed data that would consume large amounts of memory and CPU when decompressed. The affected functions, Decrypt and DecryptMulti, have been updated to return an error if the decompressed data would exceed 250kB or 10x the compressed size, whichever is greater.
The vulnerability is classified under CWE-409, which relates to resource exhaustion vulnerabilities. The attack vector for this vulnerability is categorized as network-based, with low attack complexity and low privileges required to exploit it.
The affected components include the go-jose package and the Fedora operating system, specifically versions of go-jose before 4.0.1, 3.0.3, and Fedora versions 38 to 40.
Technical Analysis
The root cause of this vulnerability lies in the handling of compressed data within the go-jose package. When an attacker sends a specially crafted JWE, the decompressing functions may attempt to allocate excessive memory resources, which can lead to denial-of-service conditions.
The attack vector is network-based, meaning that the attacker needs to send the malicious JWE over the network to the affected application. The attack complexity is low, as the attacker does not require advanced skills or knowledge to exploit this vulnerability. Privileges required are also low, allowing any user to potentially trigger the issue.
User interaction is not required for this vulnerability to be exploited, and the impact is primarily on availability, as the excessive resource consumption could lead to application downtime.
Risk & Impact Analysis
The real-world deployment risk associated with CVE-2024-28180 is significant, particularly for organizations utilizing the go-jose package in production environments. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability to exhaust system resources, leading to service interruptions and degraded system performance.
Organizations that leverage go-jose in their applications must recognize the importance of addressing this vulnerability. The potential blast radius is considerable, especially for services that rely heavily on compressed data processing.
Given the CVSS score of 4.3, organizations should address this vulnerability in their priority patch cycle to mitigate risks. The longer the vulnerability remains unpatched, the more likely it is to be exploited in the wild.
Signal | Status |
|---|---|
Known Exploit | No |
Public PoC | No |
Actively Exploited | No |
Ransomware Use | No |
Affected Versions
The following versions of the go-jose package are affected by this vulnerability: versions from 2.0.0 to 2.6.3, from 3.0.0 to 3.0.3, and from 4.0.0 to 4.0.1. Additionally, Fedora versions 38 to 40 are also impacted.
Mitigation & Remediation
Organizations should prioritize patching to remediate CVE-2024-28180. The patched versions of the go-jose package are 4.0.1, 3.0.3, and 2.6.3. If a patch is not immediately available, organizations should implement configuration hardening to limit the impact of this vulnerability.
It is also advisable to monitor application logs for unusual behaviors associated with resource usage that may indicate attempts to exploit this vulnerability.
For ongoing protection and validation of security measures, organizations can leverage penetration testing services.
Detection Guidance
To effectively monitor for potential exploitation of this vulnerability, organizations should focus on the following aspects:
1. Log any unusual spikes in memory and CPU usage related to the go-jose package, particularly during decompression operations.
2. Monitor network traffic for any suspicious JWE requests that could be attempting to exploit this vulnerability.
3. Review application behavior for anomalies that may indicate an attempt to exploit resource exhaustion vulnerabilities.
AppSecure Threat Intelligence Insight
The emergence of CVE-2024-28180 highlights a critical trend in vulnerability exploitation, particularly in the context of resource exhaustion. Security teams should take this opportunity to assess their existing defenses against similar vulnerabilities.
This vulnerability serves as a reminder to conduct regular security assessments, ensuring that applications are resilient against resource exhaustion attacks. Organizations can enhance their security posture by implementing comprehensive security testing, including application security assessments and infrastructure reviews.
Moreover, organizations should consider adopting best practices in coding and deployment, emphasizing security from the outset to avoid similar vulnerabilities in future releases.
For further reading on best practices and trends in vulnerability management, organizations can refer to our blog articles on vulnerability management programs and penetration testing methodologies to strengthen their defenses.
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
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