CVE-2021-32690
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 · uneditedHelm is a tool for managing Charts (packages of pre-configured Kubernetes resources). In versions of helm prior to 3.6.1, a vulnerability exists where the username and password credentials associated with a Helm repository could be passed on to another domain referenced by that Helm repository. This issue has been resolved in 3.6.1. There is a workaround through which one may check for improperly passed credentials. One may use a username and password for a Helm repository and may audit the Helm repository in order to check for another domain being used that could have received the credentials. In the `index.yaml` file for that repository, one may look for another domain in the `urls` list for the chart versions. If there is another domain found and that chart version was pulled or installed, the credentials would be passed on.
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 confidenceIn Helm versions before 3.6.1, repository credentials are incorrectly forwarded to any domain listed in chart URLs within the repository's index.yaml. When a chart version references a URL pointing to a domain different from the repository's base, those stored credentials get sent to the third-party domain, enabling credential theft.
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< 3.6.1CVSS 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
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N
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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Check installed Helm versionRun 'helm version' or 'helm env' to retrieve the Helm version. Compare it to 3.6.1.Affected if The installed version is earlier than 3.6.1
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List configured Helm repositoriesRun 'helm repo list' to identify all repositories with stored credentials.Affected if Any repositories are configured with authentication credentials (username/password or token)
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Locate repository index.yaml filesRepository index.yaml files are typically stored in the Helm cache directory. Run 'echo $HELM_CACHE_HOME' (defaults to ~/.cache/helm/repository/) and list all .yaml files in that directory.Affected if Repository index.yaml files exist in the cache directory
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Inspect index.yaml for third-party URLsFor each repository identified, open its index.yaml file and examine the 'urls' field under each chart version. Check if any URL points to a domain different from the repository's base URL (the domain used in 'helm repo add' or shown in 'helm repo list').Affected if Any chart URL in an index.yaml points to a domain that differs from the repository's base domain AND that repository has credentials configured
You are affected if Helm version is earlier than 3.6.1 AND you have configured repositories with credentials where the repository's index.yaml contains chart URLs pointing to domains other than the repository's base domain.
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 data3.6.1
Upgrade Helm to version 3.6.1 or later. Audit all configured Helm repositories' index.yaml files for URLs pointing to domains other than the repository's base, and rotate any credentials that may have been exposed.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-32690 — 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-2021-32690 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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