CVE-2022-21698

CVE-2022-21698 is a high-severity uncontrolled resource consumption vulnerability in github.com/prometheus/client_golang (go), affecting versions < 1.11.1. It is fixed in 1.11.1.

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Summary

Uncontrolled Resource Consumption in promhttp

This is the Go client library for Prometheus. It has two separate parts, one for instrumenting application code, and one for creating clients that talk to the Prometheus HTTP API. client_golang is the instrumentation library for Go applications in Prometheus, and the promhttp package in client_golang provides tooling around HTTP servers and clients.

Affected Configuration

In order to be affected, an instrumented software must

  • Use any of promhttp.InstrumentHandler* middleware except RequestsInFlight.
  • Do not filter any specific methods (e.g GET) before middleware.
  • Pass metric with method label name to our middleware.
  • Not have any firewall/LB/proxy that filters away requests with unknown method.

Workarounds

If you cannot upgrade to v1.11.1 or above, in order to stop being affected you can:

  • Remove method label name from counter/gauge you use in the InstrumentHandler.
  • Turn off affected promhttp handlers.
  • Add custom middleware before promhttp handler that will sanitize the request method given by Go http.Request.
  • Use a reverse proxy or web application firewall, configured to only allow a limited set of methods.

For more information

If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:

Impact

HTTP server susceptible to a Denial of Service through unbounded cardinality, and potential memory exhaustion, when handling requests with non-standard HTTP methods.

Crafted input forces the application to consume excessive CPU, memory, or other resources, degrading or denying service. Typical impact: denial of service.

CVE-2022-21698 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (High). The vector is network-reachable, no privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (1.11.1); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Affected versions

github.com/prometheus/client_golang (< 1.11.1)

Security releases

github.com/prometheus/client_golang → 1.11.1 (go)

Kodem intelligence

Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.

Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.

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Remediation advice

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. What is CVE-2022-21698? CVE-2022-21698 is a high-severity uncontrolled resource consumption vulnerability in github.com/prometheus/client_golang (go), affecting versions < 1.11.1. It is fixed in 1.11.1. Crafted input forces the application to consume excessive CPU, memory, or other resources, degrading or denying service.
  2. How severe is CVE-2022-21698? CVE-2022-21698 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
  3. Which versions of github.com/prometheus/client_golang are affected by CVE-2022-21698? github.com/prometheus/client_golang (go) versions < 1.11.1 is affected.
  4. Is there a fix for CVE-2022-21698? Yes. CVE-2022-21698 is fixed in 1.11.1. Upgrade to this version or later.
  5. Is CVE-2022-21698 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2022-21698 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
  6. What actually determines whether CVE-2022-21698 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
  7. How do I fix CVE-2022-21698? Upgrade github.com/prometheus/client_golang to 1.11.1 or later.

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