Description
A possible security vulnerability has been identified in Apache Kafka Connect API.
This requires access to a Kafka Connect worker, and the ability to create/modify connectors on it with an arbitrary Kafka client SASL JAAS config
and a SASL-based security protocol, which has been possible on Kafka Connect clusters since Apache Kafka Connect 2.3.0.
When configuring the connector via the Kafka Connect REST API, an authenticated operator can set the `sasl.jaas.config`
property for any of the connector's Kafka clients to "com.sun.security.auth.module.JndiLoginModule", which can be done via the
`producer.override.sasl.jaas.config`, `consumer.override.sasl.jaas.config`, or `admin.override.sasl.jaas.config` properties.
This will allow the server to connect to the attacker's LDAP server
and deserialize the LDAP response, which the attacker can use to execute java deserialization gadget chains on the Kafka connect server.
Attacker can cause unrestricted deserialization of untrusted data (or) RCE vulnerability when there are gadgets in the classpath.
Since Apache Kafka 3.0.0, users are allowed to specify these properties in connector configurations for Kafka Connect clusters running with out-of-the-box
configurations. Before Apache Kafka 3.0.0, users may not specify these properties unless the Kafka Connect cluster has been reconfigured with a connector
client override policy that permits them.
Since Apache Kafka 3.4.0, we have added a system property ("-Dorg.apache.kafka.disallowed.login.modules") to disable the problematic login modules usage
in SASL JAAS configuration. Also by default "com.sun.security.auth.module.JndiLoginModule" is disabled in Apache Kafka Connect 3.4.0.
We advise the Kafka Connect users to validate connector configurations and only allow trusted JNDI configurations. Also examine connector dependencies for
vulnerable versions and either upgrade their connectors, upgrading that specific dependency, or removing the connectors as options for remediation. Finally,
in addition to leveraging the "org.apache.kafka.disallowed.login.modules" system property, Kafka Connect users can also implement their own connector
client config override policy, which can be used to control which Kafka client properties can be overridden directly in a connector config and which cannot.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apache Software Foundation | Apache Kafka Connect API | 2.3.0 – < 3.4.0 | 3.4.0 |
Public exploits
Exploit or proof-of-concept code for this vulnerability is publicly available, which lowers the bar for attackers. Treat it as a reason to patch sooner.
Metasploit 1 module
-
Apache Druid JNDI Injection RCE
exploit/multi/http/apache_druid_cve_2023_25194
GitHub 3 repositories
-
ohnonoyesyes/CVE-2023-25194 ★ 92 · Feb 9, 2023
-
vulncheck-oss/cve-2023-25194 ★ 4 · Apr 17, 2024
A go-exploit for Apache Druid CVE-2023-25194
-
YongYe-Security/CVE-2023-25194 ★ 2 · Dec 28, 2023
CVE-2023-25194 Scan
Sources: PoC-in-GitHub, Metasploit Framework, Exploit-DB — updated daily. Only links are listed; no exploit code is hosted here.
Automated scanner template
A ready-made Nuclei template detects this vulnerability automatically. Vulnerabilities with public scanner templates are typically probed across the internet soon after the template appears — exposed systems should be patched first.
- Apache Druid Kafka Connect - Remote Code Execution http/cves/2023/CVE-2023-25194.yaml
Source: projectdiscovery/nuclei-templates (MIT) — updated daily. Only links are listed.
Affected packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected | Fixed | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maven | org.apache.kafka:connect | >= 2.3.0, < 3.4.0 | 3.4.0 | GHSA-26f8-x7cc-wqpc |
Advisories 8
- WID-SEC-2023-0300 Apache Kafka: Schwachstelle ermöglicht Codeausführung BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Jan 6, 2026
- WID-SEC-2024-0107 Oracle Communications Applications: Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Jan 16, 2024
- WID-SEC-2023-1807 Oracle Fusion Middleware: Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Dec 26, 2023
- WID-SEC-2023-2700 Atlassian Confluence: Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Dec 12, 2023
- WID-SEC-2023-1812 Oracle Communications: Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Jul 20, 2023
- WID-SEC-2023-1813 Oracle Communications Applications: Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Jul 18, 2023
- WID-SEC-2023-1808 Oracle Financial Services Applications: Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Jul 18, 2023
- WID-SEC-2023-1017 Oracle Financial Services Applications: Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Apr 18, 2023