CVE-2023-25151

otelhttp and otelbeego have DoS vulnerability for high cardinality metrics

The v0.38.0 release of go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/net/http/otelhttp uses the httpconv.ServerRequest function to annotate metric measurements for the http.server.request_content_length, http.server.response_content_length, and http.server.duration instruments.

The ServerRequest function sets the http.target attribute value to be the whole request URI (including the query string)[^1]. The metric instruments do not "forget" previous measurement attributes when cumulative temporality is used, this means the cardinality of the measurements allocated is directly correlated with the unique URIs handled. If the query string is constantly random, this will result in a constant increase in memory allocation that can be used in a denial-of-service attack.

Pseudo-attack:

for infinite loop {
  r := generate_random_string()
  do_http_request("/some/path?random="+r)
}

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

CVE-2023-25151 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 (0.39.0); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Kodem intelligence

Already deployed Kodem?

• go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/net/http/otelhttp - v0.39.0
• go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/github.com/astaxie/beego/otelbeego - v0.39.0

1. What is CVE-2023-25151? CVE-2023-25151 is a high-severity uncontrolled resource consumption vulnerability in go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/net/http/otelhttp (go), affecting versions >= 0.38.0, < 0.39.0. It is fixed in 0.39.0. Crafted input forces the application to consume excessive CPU, memory, or other resources, degrading or denying service.
2. How severe is CVE-2023-25151? CVE-2023-25151 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 packages are affected by CVE-2023-25151?
   • go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/net/http/otelhttp (go) (versions >= 0.38.0, < 0.39.0)
   • go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/github.com/astaxie/beego/otelbeego (go) (versions >= 0.38.0, < 0.39.0)
4. Is there a fix for CVE-2023-25151? Yes. CVE-2023-25151 is fixed in 0.39.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is CVE-2023-25151 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2023-25151 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-2023-25151 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-2023-25151?
   • Upgrade go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/net/http/otelhttp to 0.39.0 or later
   • Upgrade go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/github.com/astaxie/beego/otelbeego to 0.39.0 or later

Other vulnerabilities in go.opentelemetry.io/contrib/instrumentation/net/http/otelhttp