dbcve.org
Nats ServerApplication · Linuxfoundation

CVE-2022-28357

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-09-19
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 2.7.4 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges 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
NATS nats-server 2.2.0 through 2.7.4 allows directory traversal because of an unintended path to a management action from a management account.

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

A directory traversal vulnerability exists in NATS nats-server versions 2.2.0 through 2.7.4. An authenticated user with a management account can exploit an unintended path to access files outside the intended directory through path manipulation (e.g., ../ sequences or absolute paths), potentially reading sensitive system files.

MitigationUpgrade nats-server to version 2.7.5 or later. If immediate upgrade is not feasible, restrict network access to the management interface and implement additional access controls on management accounts.

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
Nats ServerApplication
Affected:>= 2.2.0, <= 2.7.4

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
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 nats-server version
    Run `nats-server --version` or check the binary metadata (e.g., `nats-server -v`). If nats-server runs as a service, check the installed package version via system package manager (dpkg, rpm, or yum).
    Affected if Version is 2.2.0, 2.7.4, or any version in between (2.2.0 <= version <= 2.7.4)
  2. Confirm management account authentication is enabled
    Review nats-server configuration file (typically nats-server.conf or /etc/nats/nats-server.conf) for authorization block with user definitions. Look for `authorization` or `users` sections that define management-level accounts.
    Affected if A management account is defined and enabled in the nats-server configuration
  3. Verify JetStream module is in use
    Check configuration for `jetstream` block or run `nats server info` to see if JetStream is enabled. This module exposes the API endpoints vulnerable to path traversal.
    Affected if JetStream is enabled in the nats-server configuration
  4. Assess network exposure of management interface
    Review bind addresses in configuration (look for `listen` directive). Check if the NATS management port (default 4222, or 8222 for monitoring) is bound to 0.0.0.0 or an exposed network interface rather than localhost/127.0.0.1.
    Affected if Management interface is accessible from non-localhost network addresses

User is affected if nats-server version is between 2.2.0 and 2.7.4 inclusive AND a management account exists AND JetStream is enabled, with network access to the management interface.

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 a release after 2.7.4
Interim mitigation

Upgrade nats-server to version 2.7.5 or later. If immediate upgrade is not feasible, restrict network access to the management interface and implement additional access controls on management accounts.

Recommended fix High confidence

NATS Server 2.7.5 or later (e.g., 2.7.5, 2.8.0, or latest stable)

  1. 1. Identify all NATS server instances running versions 2.2.0 through 2.7.4 in your environment
  2. 2. Plan maintenance window for upgrade (NATS will require brief restart)
  3. 3. Download NATS server version 2.7.5 or later from https://github.com/nats-io/nats-server/releases
  4. 4. Stop the NATS server service on each affected instance
  5. 5. Replace the existing nats-server binary with the new version
  6. 6. Verify file permissions and ownership are correct on the new binary
  7. 7. Start the NATS server service
  8. 8. Verify the server is running correctly: nats-server --version should show 2.7.5 or later
Caveat Review release notes for any deprecation warnings between 2.7.4 and target version; minor version upgrades typically backward-compatible

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

Fix this in Nats Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,480
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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-2022-28357 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