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ZookeeperApplication · Apache

CVE-2024-51504

CRITICAL · 9.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-11-07
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 3.9.3 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
When using IPAuthenticationProvider in ZooKeeper Admin Server there is a possibility of Authentication Bypass by Spoofing -- this only impacts IP based authentication implemented in ZooKeeper Admin Server. Default configuration of client's IP address detection in IPAuthenticationProvider, which uses HTTP request headers, is weak and allows an attacker to bypass authentication via spoofing client's IP address in request headers. Default configuration honors X-Forwarded-For HTTP header to read client's IP address. X-Forwarded-For request header is mainly used by proxy servers to identify the client and can be easily spoofed by an attacker pretending that the request comes from a different IP address. Admin Server commands, such as snapshot and restore arbitrarily can be executed on successful exploitation which could potentially lead to information leakage or service availability issues. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 3.9.3, which fixes this issue.

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

ZooKeeper Admin Server's IPAuthenticationProvider uses the X-Forwarded-For HTTP header to determine client IP addresses for authentication. Since this header can be trivially spoofed by an attacker, remote attackers can bypass IP-based authentication and execute sensitive admin commands like 'snapshot' and 'restore', leading to data exfiltration or denial of service.

MitigationUpgrade to ZooKeeper version 3.9.3. Alternatively, disable X-Forwarded-For header processing in the Admin Server configuration or implement proper proxy trust validation to prevent header spoofing.

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
ZookeeperApplication
Affected:>= 3.9.0, < 3.9.3

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
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/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 ZooKeeper version
    Run `java -cp zookeeper.jar:lib/* org.apache.zookeeper.version.Version` or check the jar file name, or run `zkServer.sh version`
    Affected if version is 3.9.0, 3.9.1, or 3.9.2 (falls within >= 3.9.0 and < 3.9.3)
  2. Verify IPAuthenticationProvider is configured
    Inspect the ZooKeeper configuration file (zoo.cfg or zoo.cfg.xml) for lines containing `authProvider.` or `ipauthenticationprovider`
    Affected if IPAuthenticationProvider is explicitly configured and enabled in the configuration
  3. Confirm Admin Server is in use
    Check for admin server configuration in zoo.cfg: look for `admin.serverPort` and `admin.enableServer` settings, or verify port 8080/8081 is listening
    Affected if Admin Server is enabled and running (the vulnerability exists in the Admin Server endpoint)
  4. Check for IP-based access control relying on X-Forwarded-For
    Review the ensemble configuration or security policies to determine if IPAuthenticationProvider is being used to restrict sensitive commands like `snapshot` or `restore`
    Affected if IP-based authentication rules are defined and could be bypassed via header spoofing

You are affected if ZooKeeper version is 3.9.0-3.9.2 AND IPAuthenticationProvider is configured on the Admin Server, allowing potential spoofing of the X-Forwarded-For header to bypass IP-based access controls.

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 3.9.3 or later
Fixed in 3.9.3
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to ZooKeeper version 3.9.3. Alternatively, disable X-Forwarded-For header processing in the Admin Server configuration or implement proper proxy trust validation to prevent header spoofing.

Recommended fix High confidence

Apache ZooKeeper 3.9.3

  1. Stop the ZooKeeper service to ensure a clean upgrade process
  2. Backup your ZooKeeper configuration files (zoo.cfg) and data directory before proceeding
  3. Download and install Apache ZooKeeper version 3.9.3 from the official Apache distribution
  4. Replace the existing ZooKeeper binaries and libraries with the 3.9.3 version
  5. Review and restore your backed-up configuration files if needed
  6. Start the ZooKeeper service and verify it running correctly
  7. Confirm the ZooKeeper version is 3.9.3 using the version command or admin server

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

Fix this in Zookeeper Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
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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-2024-51504 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