Grpc-protobuf-1.61.0.jar Vulnerability CVE-2024-7254 Analysis And Remediation

This article provides a comprehensive analysis of the CVE-2024-7254 vulnerability affecting the grpc-protobuf-1.61.0.jar library, specifically focusing on its impact within the context of the TPIsoftwareOSPO digiRunner project. We will delve into the vulnerability details, its potential impact, and provide a detailed remediation guide to help you secure your applications.

Vulnerability Overview

The grpc-protobuf-1.61.0.jar library, a crucial component for gRPC (Google Remote Procedure Call) integration with Protocol Buffers, has been identified as vulnerable to CVE-2024-7254. This vulnerability stems from a flaw in the protobuf-java-3.25.1.jar library, a transitive dependency of grpc-protobuf-1.61.0.jar. The vulnerability is classified as High severity with a CVSS score of 7.5. This means it poses a significant risk to applications that use the affected library.

The vulnerability was found in the HEAD commit c4e0f6bda466e8af0a16267bd7685ba9cadea6ee within the digiRunner project, highlighting the importance of addressing it promptly.

Vulnerability Details: CVE-2024-7254

The root cause of CVE-2024-7254 lies in the way the protobuf-java library handles nested groups or series of SGROUP tags within Protocol Buffers data. Specifically, the vulnerability arises when parsing untrusted Protocol Buffers data containing an arbitrary number of nested groups. An attacker can exploit this by crafting malicious input that causes unbounded recursion during parsing, leading to a StackOverflow error. This can occur when parsing nested groups as unknown fields with DiscardUnknownFieldsParser or Java Protobuf Lite parser, or against Protobuf map fields.

The vulnerable library is protobuf-java-3.25.1.jar, which is a core component for encoding structured data in an efficient and extensible format using Protocol Buffers.

This vulnerability has the potential to cause a denial-of-service (DoS) attack, rendering the application unavailable. The detailed information about this vulnerability is available on the Mend Vulnerability Database.

Impact Analysis

To fully understand the severity, let's break down the CVSS v3 score of 7.5:

• Attack Vector (AV:N): Network. This means the vulnerability can be exploited remotely over a network, increasing the potential attack surface.
• Attack Complexity (AC:L): Low. Exploiting this vulnerability requires minimal effort, making it easier for attackers to execute.
• Privileges Required (PR:N): None. No specific privileges are needed to exploit the vulnerability, further simplifying the attack process.
• User Interaction (UI:N): None. No user interaction is required, allowing attackers to trigger the vulnerability without any user action.
• Scope (S:U): Unchanged. The vulnerability's impact is limited to the affected component.
• Confidentiality Impact (C:N): None. The vulnerability does not directly lead to the disclosure of sensitive information.
• Integrity Impact (I:N): None. The vulnerability does not directly lead to data modification or corruption.
• Availability Impact (A:H): High. The primary impact is a denial of service, potentially causing significant downtime and disruption.

Dependency Hierarchy

Understanding the dependency chain helps clarify how the vulnerability affects your project:

• grpc-protobuf-1.61.0.jar (Root Library)
  • protobuf-java-3.25.1.jar (Vulnerable Library)

As you can see, the vulnerability is present in a transitive dependency, meaning it is not a direct dependency in your project's build.gradle but is included because grpc-protobuf-1.61.0.jar depends on it. This highlights the importance of regularly scanning your project's dependencies for vulnerabilities, including transitive ones.

Remediation Guide

Addressing this vulnerability is crucial to ensure the stability and security of your application. The suggested fix is to upgrade to a version of grpc-protobuf that includes a patched version of protobuf-java. Specifically, upgrading to grpc-protobuf version 1.69.0 or later will resolve the vulnerability.

Step-by-Step Remediation

1. Identify the Vulnerable Dependency:

   • The vulnerability is in protobuf-java-3.25.1.jar, which is a transitive dependency of grpc-protobuf-1.61.0.jar.
   • The path to the vulnerable library is: /tmp/containerbase/cache/.gradle/caches/modules-2/files-2.1/com.google.protobuf/protobuf-java/3.25.1/2933a5c3f022456d8842323fe0d7fb2d25a7e3c7/protobuf-java-3.25.1.jar
   • The dependency file is /dgrv4_Gateway_serv/build.gradle.

2. Update the build.gradle File:

   • Open your project's build.gradle file.
   • Locate the dependency declaration for grpc-protobuf.
   • Update the version to 1.69.0 or a later version. For example:

     dependencies {
         implementation 'io.grpc:grpc-protobuf:1.69.0'
         // Other dependencies...
     }
     

3. Sync Gradle:

   • After updating the build.gradle file, synchronize your Gradle project. This will download the updated dependencies and remove the vulnerable version.
   • In Android Studio, you can do this by clicking