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CVE-2022-33681 Apache Pulsar

Affected softwareApache Pulsar
Severity5.9 Medium CVSS 3.1 2 scores
Fixed in2.7.5, 2.8.4, 2.9.3, 2.10.1
WeaknessCWE-295
Published23 Sep 2022
Updated17 Jun 2026

Description

Delayed TLS hostname verification in the Pulsar Java Client and the Pulsar Proxy make each client vulnerable to a man in the middle attack. Connections from the Pulsar Java Client to the Pulsar Broker/Proxy and connections from the Pulsar Proxy to the Pulsar Broker are vulnerable. Authentication data is sent before verifying the server’s TLS certificate matches the hostname, which means authentication data could be exposed to an attacker. An attacker can only take advantage of this vulnerability by taking control of a machine 'between' the client and the server. The attacker must then actively manipulate traffic to perform the attack by providing the client with a cryptographically valid certificate for an unrelated host. Because the client sends authentication data before performing hostname verification, an attacker could gain access to the client’s authentication data. The client eventually closes the connection when it verifies the hostname and identifies the targeted hostname does not match a hostname on the certificate. Because the client eventually closes the connection, the value of the intercepted authentication data depends on the authentication method used by the client. Token based authentication and username/password authentication methods are vulnerable because the authentication data can be used to impersonate the client in a separate session. This issue affects Apache Pulsar Java Client versions 2.7.0 to 2.7.4; 2.8.0 to 2.8.3; 2.9.0 to 2.9.2; 2.10.0; 2.6.4 and earlier.

Exploitation status

No public exploit

No exploit has been reported in the sources we check. Published 4 years ago.

  • CISA KEV not listed
  • VulnCheck KEV not listed
  • CISA Vulnrichment exploitation: none
  • Indexed PoC none indexed
  • EPSS 0.70% chance in 30 days

Waratek protection

No exploit published

Within Waratek scope. In the sources we check, nobody has published exploit code for this CVE or reported it being exploited.

A public code fix exists.

  • Protection none
  • Action unverified
  • Review automated Upstream data
  • Record active
Decided by Medium or Low severity, no CISA or VulnCheck KEV listing, no PoC clearing the evidence bar, no CISA verdict, no Oracle advisory
Finding This CVE is MEDIUM severity, is not listed in CISA KEV or VulnCheck KEV, has no public exploit or PoC in any indexed source, carries no CISA Vulnrichment finding of a demonstrated exploit, and is not part of an Oracle Critical Patch Update. None of the signals that would put it in front of an engineer is present, and the volume of CVEs below that bar is too great to take one at a time, so no rule is written for it. This is a decision about what we act on, not a finding that the CVE is harmless — a patch may well be derivable, and a low-severity defect can still be one link in a longer chain.

CVSS

5.9 MEDIUM v3.1 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N 2 metrics

We show the highest score from the newest CVSS version. Scores from different versions can't be compared, and the first score listed is sometimes a 0.0 placeholder.

VersionScoreBandVectorAssignerType
CVSS 3.1 5.9 MEDIUM CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N NVD Primary published
CVSS 3.1 5.9 MEDIUM CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N CISA-ADP Secondary

Affected software and releases

Maven packages

Affected and fixed versions, from OSV.dev
PackageIntroducedFixedLast affected
org.apache.pulsar:pulsar-client 0 2.7.5 unbounded
org.apache.pulsar:pulsar-client 2.8.0 2.8.4 unbounded
org.apache.pulsar:pulsar-client 2.9.0 2.9.3 unbounded
org.apache.pulsar:pulsar-client 2.10.0 2.10.1 unbounded

Products and versions

2 products, 8 version entries
SourceVendorProductSchemeAffected versions
nvd apache pulsar generic < 2.7.5 · ≥ 2.8.0 and < 2.8.4 · ≥ 2.9.0 and < 2.9.3 · 2.10.0
osv org.apache.pulsar pulsar-client generic < 2.7.5 · ≥ 2.8.0 and < 2.8.4 · ≥ 2.9.0 and < 2.9.3 · ≥ 2.10.0 and < 2.10.1

References

URLTags
https://github.com/apache/pulsar/tree/db26073728bf86fc80deecaece2dc02b50bbb9b5/pulsar-client PACKAGE
https://lists.apache.org/thread/fpo6x10trvn20hlk0dmnr5vlz5v4kl3d WEB

Timeline

Published2022-09-23By the CVE Program.
NVD record modified2026-06-17NVD's own last-modified date for this record.