Summary
Improper path handling in kustomization files allows path traversal
The kustomize-controller enables the use of Kustomize’s functionality when applying Kubernetes declarative state onto a cluster. A malicious user can use built-in features and a specially crafted kustomization.yaml to expose sensitive data from the controller’s pod filesystem. In multi-tenancy deployments this can lead to privilege escalation if the controller's service account has elevated permissions.
Within the affected versions, users with write access to a Flux source are able to use built-in features to expose sensitive data from the controller’s pod filesystem using a malicious kustomization.yaml file.
This vulnerability was fixed in kustomize-controller v0.24.0 and included in flux2 v0.29.0 released on 2022-04-20. The changes introduce a new Kustomize file system implementation which ensures that all files being handled are contained within the Kustomization working directory, blocking references to any files that do not meet that requirement.
Automated tooling (e.g. conftest) could be employed as a workaround, as part of a user's CI/CD pipeline to ensure that their kustomization.yaml files conform with specific policies, blocking access to sensitive path locations.
Impact
Input manipulates file paths to reach files outside the intended directory, such as configuration or credential files. Typical impact: unauthorized file read or write outside the intended directory.
CVE-2022-24877 has a CVSS score of 9.9 (Critical). The vector is network-reachable, low 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 (0.24.0, 0.29.0); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.
Affected versions
Security releases
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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github.com/fluxcd/kustomize-controller to 0.24.0 or later; github.com/fluxcd/flux2 to 0.29.0 or later
Kodem Kai can prioritize this vulnerability in your dependency tree and generate a fix recommendation.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2022-24877? CVE-2022-24877 is a critical-severity path traversal vulnerability in github.com/fluxcd/kustomize-controller (go), affecting versions < 0.24.0. It is fixed in 0.24.0, 0.29.0. Input manipulates file paths to reach files outside the intended directory, such as configuration or credential files.
- How severe is CVE-2022-24877? CVE-2022-24877 has a CVSS score of 9.9 (Critical). 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.
- Which packages are affected by CVE-2022-24877?
github.com/fluxcd/kustomize-controller(go) (versions < 0.24.0)github.com/fluxcd/flux2(go) (versions < 0.29.0)
- Is there a fix for CVE-2022-24877? Yes. CVE-2022-24877 is fixed in 0.24.0, 0.29.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2022-24877 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2022-24877 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
- What actually determines whether CVE-2022-24877 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.
- How do I fix CVE-2022-24877?
- Upgrade
github.com/fluxcd/kustomize-controllerto 0.24.0 or later - Upgrade
github.com/fluxcd/flux2to 0.29.0 or later
- Upgrade