CVE-2022-21701

HIGH
Published Jan 19, 20224y ago · Modified Jun 17, 20262w ago
8.8 CVSS 3.1
High
Find Similar
Published Jan 19, 2022 4y ago
Last Modified Jun 17, 2026 2w ago

Description

Istio is an open platform to connect, manage, and secure microservices. In versions 1.12.0 and 1.12.1 Istio is vulnerable to a privilege escalation attack. Users who have `CREATE` permission for `gateways.gateway.networking.k8s.io` objects can escalate this privilege to create other resources that they may not have access to, such as `Pod`. This vulnerability impacts only an Alpha level feature, the Kubernetes Gateway API. This is not the same as the Istio Gateway type (gateways.networking.istio.io), which is not vulnerable. Users are advised to upgrade to resolve this issue. Users unable to upgrade should implement any of the following which will prevent this vulnerability: Remove the gateways.gateway.networking.k8s.io CustomResourceDefinition, set PILOT_ENABLE_GATEWAY_API_DEPLOYMENT_CONTROLLER=true environment variable in Istiod, or remove CREATE permissions for gateways.gateway.networking.k8s.io objects from untrusted users.

CVSS Details

Base Score
8.8
Exploitability
2.8
Impact
5.9
Vector string
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Attack Vector Network
Attack Complexity Low
Privileges Required Low
User Interaction None
Scope Unchanged
Confidentiality High
Integrity High
Availability High

Threat Intelligence

No active exploitation signals — not in CISA KEV and no EPSS score yet.

Exploit & Patch Status
No Known Exploit
No Patch Available

Weaknesses 1

CWE-863 Incorrect Authorization Authorization

Affected Products 9

VendorProductVersionRange
istioistio1.12.0any
istioistio1.12.0any
istioistio1.12.0any
istioistio1.12.0any
istioistio1.12.0any
istioistio1.12.0any
istioistio1.12.0any
istioistio1.12.0any
istioistio1.12.1any

References 2

  • github.com https://github.com/istio/istio/security/advisories/GHSA-mq8f-9446-c28r
    Third Party Advisory
  • istio.io https://istio.io/latest/news/releases/1.12.x/announcing-1.12.2/
    MitigationRelease NotesVendor Advisory

Remediation

No remediation data recorded yet

Check vendor advisories and the NVD entry for patch availability.