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ElasticsearchDatabase / datastore · Elastic

CVE-2020-7009

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-03-31
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 6.8.8 / 7.6.2 or later.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable Zero-click

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 · unedited
Elasticsearch versions from 6.7.0 before 6.8.8 and 7.0.0 before 7.6.2 contain a privilege escalation flaw if an attacker is able to create API keys. An attacker who is able to generate an API key can perform a series of steps that result in an API key being generated with elevated privileges.

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 confidence

Elasticsearch versions 6.7.0 through 6.8.7 and 7.0.0 through 7.6.1 contain a privilege escalation vulnerability in the API key feature. An authenticated attacker with the ability to create API keys can manipulate the key creation process to generate keys with privileges beyond those originally granted to their account, effectively escalating their permissions within the cluster.

MitigationUpgrade Elasticsearch to version 6.8.8 or 7.6.2 or later. Additionally, restrict API key creation permissions to only trusted administrators and monitor for unauthorized privilege escalation attempts.

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
ElasticsearchDatabase / datastore
Affected:>= 6.7.0, < 6.8.8>= 7.0.0, < 7.6.2

CVSS 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
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Determine installed Elasticsearch version
    Run `GET /` on the Elasticsearch node or check the version from the elasticsearch process/folder name. For docker, check the image tag. Compare the version number to the affected ranges: 6.7.0 to 6.8.7, or 7.0.0 to 7.6.1.
    Affected if The installed version falls within 6.7.0 to 6.8.7 or 7.0.0 to 7.6.1.
  2. Verify API key feature is in use
    Check if any API keys exist in the cluster by running `GET /_security/api_key` with administrative credentials, or review your application configurations for stored API keys.
    Affected if API keys have been created and are actively used in the environment.
  3. Identify users with API key creation privileges
    Review the security role definitions by running `GET /_security/role` and look for roles that include the `manage_api_key` or `create_api_key` privilege. Check which users are assigned these roles via `GET /_security/user`.
    Affected if Any user or service account has been granted privileges to create API keys.
  4. Review audit logs for API key creation activity
    Examine Elasticsearch audit logs (typically in the logs directory) for events of type `authentication_success` combined with `create_api_key` action. Look for patterns where new keys were created with unexpected or elevated privileges.
    Affected if Audit logs show API key creation events, especially from non-administrative users.

You are affected if your Elasticsearch version is between 6.7.0 and 6.8.7 or between 7.0.0 and 7.6.1, AND any user in your cluster has the ability to create API keys.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Upgrade available Upgrade to 6.8.8 / 7.6.2 or later
Fixed in 6.8.87.6.2
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Elasticsearch to version 6.8.8 or 7.6.2 or later. Additionally, restrict API key creation permissions to only trusted administrators and monitor for unauthorized privilege escalation attempts.

Fix this in Elasticsearch Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing12.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
28.0 hours of engineering $4,760
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2020-7009 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data