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Aws Iam AuthenticatorApplication · Kubernetes

CVE-2022-2385

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-07-12
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 0.5.9 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
A security issue was discovered in aws-iam-authenticator where an allow-listed IAM identity may be able to modify their username and escalate 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 · moderate confidence

In aws-iam-authenticator, an allow-listed IAM identity can potentially modify their username during authentication, bypassing intended access controls and allowing privilege escalation to higher-privileged Kubernetes roles or user accounts.

MitigationReview and restrict the IAM identity allow-list configuration in aws-iam-authenticator; ensure only intended IAM principals are permitted and that username mapping cannot be manipulated for privilege escalation.

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
Aws Iam AuthenticatorApplication
Affected:>= 0.5.2, < 0.5.9

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. Identify the installed aws-iam-authenticator version
    Run 'aws-iam-authenticator version' or check the binary version installed on your Kubernetes control plane nodes
    Affected if The version is 0.5.2 through 0.5.8 inclusive (versions >= 0.5.2 and < 0.5.9)
  2. Locate the aws-iam-authenticator configuration file
    Check for the config file typically at /etc/aws-iam-authenticator/config.yaml or in the path specified via the AWS_IAM_AUTHENTICATOR_CONFIG environment variable
    Affected if A configuration file exists and is in use by the authenticator
  3. Verify if IAM identity allow-listing is enabled
    Inspect the configuration file for the 'mapRoles', 'mapUsers', or similar allow-list entries that define which IAM principals can authenticate
    Affected if The allow-list configuration (mapRoles/mapUsers) is present and defines IAM principals permitted to authenticate
  4. Examine the allow-list entries for exploitable username mappings
    Review each entry in mapRoles or mapUsers sections to determine if username fields can be manipulated by the authenticated IAM identity
    Affected if Any allow-list entry permits an IAM principal to control or influence their mapped Kubernetes username

You are affected if the aws-iam-authenticator version is 0.5.2 through 0.5.8 and an IAM identity allow-list (mapRoles/mapUsers) is configured that allows principals to manipulate their own username mapping for privilege escalation.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 0.5.9 or later
Fixed in 0.5.9
Interim mitigation

Review and restrict the IAM identity allow-list configuration in aws-iam-authenticator; ensure only intended IAM principals are permitted and that username mapping cannot be manipulated for privilege escalation.

Recommended fix High confidence

aws-iam-authenticator >= 0.5.9

  1. 1. Identify all Kubernetes clusters running aws-iam-authenticator versions between 0.5.2 and 0.5.8
  2. 2. Backup current aws-iam-authenticator configuration and manifests
  3. 3. Download and install aws-iam-authenticator version 0.5.9 or later from the official GitHub releases (github.com/kubernetes-sigs/aws-iam-authenticator)
  4. 4. Update Kubernetes manifests (Deployments, ConfigMaps) that reference the old version to use version 0.5.9 or later
  5. 5. Apply the updated manifests to your clusters: kubectl apply -f <manifest-file.yaml>
  6. 6. Verify the upgrade by checking the running version: aws-iam-authenticator version
  7. 7. Test IAM authentication to ensure the authenticator functions correctly after the upgrade
  8. 8. Monitor for any authentication failures or errors in the logs
Caveat Review release notes for 0.5.9 for any configuration changes; minor version upgrades typically have minimal breaking changes but should be tested in non-production first

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Aws Iam Authenticator Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
16.0 hours of engineering $2,840
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,544.

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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-2022-2385 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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