CVE-2013-1398
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedThe pe_mcollective module in Puppet Enterprise (PE) before 2.7.1 does not properly restrict access to a catalog of private SSL keys, which allows remote authenticated users to obtain sensitive information and gain privileges by leveraging root access to a node, related to the master role.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceThe pe_mcollective module in Puppet Enterprise before 2.7.1 failed to properly restrict access to a catalog containing private SSL keys. This allowed any authenticated user with root access to a node to retrieve sensitive SSL key material, potentially enabling privilege escalation and unauthorized access to the Puppet Master infrastructure.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data<= 2.7.0= 2.0.0= 2.5.1= 2.5.2= 2.5.0= 2.6.0CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- M
- Authentication
- Single
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:N/AC:M/Au:S/C:C/I:C/A:C
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify installed Puppet product and versionRun 'puppet --version' or check '/opt/puppet/bin/puppet --version' to determine if you are using Puppet Enterprise or open-source Puppet, and note the exact version number.Affected if The version is Puppet Enterprise 2.7.0 or earlier (including 2.0.0, 2.5.1, 2.5.2), or open-source Puppet 2.5.0 or 2.6.0.
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Locate the pe_mcollective moduleSearch for the pe_mcollective module directory, typically found under the Puppet modulepath such as '/etc/puppet/modules/pe_mcollective' or the directory returned by 'puppet config print modulepath'.Affected if The pe_mcollective module directory exists and is present in the modulepath.
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Verify the pe_mcollective service is activeCheck if the MCollective service is running. On Puppet Enterprise, this is typically controlled via 'service mcollective status' or by checking for running processes related to MCollective.Affected if The MCollective service is running or enabled on the node.
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Inspect module configuration for SSL catalog exposureExamine the pe_mcollective module's configuration files, particularly in the 'pe_mcollective/templates' or 'pe_mcollective/files' directories, for any templates or scripts that expose the SSL catalog endpoint without proper authentication controls.Affected if Configuration files allow unauthenticated or improperly authenticated access to the SSL key catalog.
A user is affected if they are running Puppet Enterprise 2.7.0 or earlier (or open-source Puppet 2.5.0/2.6.0) with the pe_mcollective module enabled and accessible to authenticated users.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataUpgrade Puppet Enterprise to version 2.7.1 or later, which implements proper access controls on the SSL key catalog in the pe_mcollective module.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,880.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2013-1398 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2013-1398 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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