Описание
RustFS has a gRPC Hardcoded Token Authentication Bypass
Vulnerability Overview
Description
RustFS implements gRPC authentication using a hardcoded static token "rustfs rpc" that is:
- Publicly exposed in the source code repository
- Hardcoded on both client and server sides
- Non-configurable with no mechanism for token rotation
- Universally valid across all RustFS deployments
Any attacker with network access to the gRPC port can authenticate using this publicly known token and execute privileged operations including data destruction, policy manipulation, and cluster configuration changes.
CVSS 3.1 Score
Score: 9.8 (Critical)
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
- Attack Vector (AV): Network - Exploitable remotely
- Attack Complexity (AC): Low - No special conditions required
- Privileges Required (PR): None - No authentication needed (bypassed)
- User Interaction (UI): None - Fully automated exploitation
- Scope (S): Unchanged - Impact contained to vulnerable component
- Confidentiality (C): High - Complete data disclosure
- Integrity (I): High - Complete data modification capability
- Availability (A): High - Complete service disruption capability
Vulnerable Code Analysis
Server-Side Authentication (rustfs/src/server/http.rs:679-686)
Issues:
- Static token hardcoded as string literal
- No configuration mechanism (environment variable, file, etc.)
- Token visible in public GitHub repository
- Identical across all installations
Client-Side Authentication (crates/protos/src/lib.rs:153-174)
Issues:
- Client uses identical hardcoded token
- No secure token distribution mechanism
- Token cannot be rotated without code changes
Service Integration (rustfs/src/server/http.rs:520-521)
The check_auth interceptor is applied to all gRPC services via NodeServiceServer::with_interceptor, protecting all 50+ gRPC methods in node.proto with the same weak authentication.
Reproduction Steps
Environment Setup
Test Environment:
- RustFS Server:
localhost:9000(HTTP + gRPC hybrid service) - RustFS Console:
localhost:9001 - Container:
rustfs/rustfs:latest(Docker Compose deployment) - Default credentials:
rustfsadmin/rustfsadmin
Tools Required:
grpcurlv1.9.3+ (gRPC command-line client)- RustFS proto files:
crates/protos/src/node.proto
Step 1: Verify Authentication is Enforced
Test 1.1: Request without authentication token
Expected Result: ✅ Authentication failure
Test 1.2: Request with incorrect token
Expected Result: ✅ Authentication failure
Conclusion: Authentication is properly enforced - unauthorized requests are rejected.
Step 2: Extract Hardcoded Token from Source Code
Public Source Code Analysis:
Result: ✅ Token found in public source code
Extracted Token: rustfs rpc
Step 3: Exploit - Authenticate Using Hardcoded Token
Test 3.1: Successful authentication with hardcoded token
Result: 🔓 AUTHENTICATION BYPASSED
Analysis: Server accepted the hardcoded token and returned a successful response. Authentication completely bypassed.
Step 4: Demonstrate Access to Sensitive Management APIs
Test 4.1: Server Configuration Disclosure
Result: ✅ Complete server configuration disclosed
Analysis:
- Server returned complete configuration including storage paths, endpoint addresses, version info
- Binary data contains sensitive internal state (MessagePack encoded)
- Information disclosure confirmed
Test 4.2: Disk Information Access
Result: ✅ Authenticated request accepted (business logic error returned, not auth error)
Analysis:
- Request passed authentication (error is business logic, not authentication)
- Proves attacker has authenticated access to sensitive system information APIs
Impact Analysis
Affected APIs
All 50+ gRPC methods in node_service.NodeService are vulnerable:
🔴 CRITICAL Impact - Data Destruction
DeleteBucket- Delete production bucketsDeleteVolume- Destroy entire storage volumesDeleteUser- Remove legitimate usersDeletePolicy- Remove access control policiesDeleteServiceAccount- Remove service accounts
🔴 CRITICAL Impact - Configuration Manipulation
ReloadSiteReplicationConfig- Corrupt cluster replicationSignalService- Control service lifecycleLoadPolicy- Modify access control policiesLoadPolicyMapping- Alter policy assignments
🟠 HIGH Impact - Unauthorized Data Access/Modification
ReadAll/ReadAt- Read arbitrary dataWriteAll/WriteStream- Inject malicious dataRenameFile/RenameData- Manipulate file systemUpdateMetadata/WriteMetadata- Corrupt metadata
🟠 HIGH Impact - Privilege Escalation
LoadUser- Access user credentialsLoadServiceAccount- Access service credentialsLoadGroup- Access group memberships
🟡 MEDIUM Impact - Information Disclosure
ServerInfo- Server configuration disclosureDiskInfo- Storage configuration disclosureGetMetrics- Performance metrics disclosureGetBucketStats- Bucket statistics disclosureLocalStorageInfo- Storage system informationListBucket- Bucket enumeration
🟡 MEDIUM Impact - Cluster Operations
MakeBucket- Unauthorized bucket creationHealBucket- Trigger repair operationsBackgroundHealStatus- Monitor internal operations
Attack Scenarios
Scenario 1: Data Destruction
Impact: Complete data loss, business disruption
Scenario 2: Credential Harvesting
Impact: Complete IAM compromise, lateral movement
Scenario 3: Backdoor Installation
Impact: Persistent compromise, further exploitation
Scenario 4: Cluster Disruption
Impact: Distributed system failure, data inconsistency
Exploitation Preconditions
Required Conditions
✅ All conditions typically met in production deployments:
-
Network Access: Attacker can reach gRPC port (9000/TCP)
- RustFS binds to
0.0.0.0by default (all interfaces) - Commonly exposed for distributed node communication
- RustFS binds to
-
Token Knowledge: Token is publicly known
- Available in public GitHub repository
- Identical across all RustFS installations
- Cannot be changed without code modification
-
No Additional Security Controls:
- No mTLS/certificate-based authentication
- No IP whitelisting (typically)
- No VPN/network segmentation requirements
- No rate limiting on authentication attempts
Attack Complexity
Complexity: 🟢 TRIVIAL
- Single
grpcurlcommand with hardcoded token - No exploit development required
- No timing or race conditions
- No target-specific reconnaissance needed
- Fully automatable
- Works against any RustFS instance
Time to Exploit: < 1 minute
Security Impact
Confidentiality Impact: HIGH
- Complete Data Disclosure: All stored objects readable via
ReadAll/ReadAt - Credential Exposure: IAM users, service accounts, policies accessible
- Configuration Disclosure: Server, storage, cluster configuration leaked
- Metrics Exposure: Performance and usage metrics accessible
Integrity Impact: HIGH
- Data Modification: Arbitrary data injection via
WriteAll/WriteStream - Metadata Corruption: File metadata tampering via
WriteMetadata - Policy Manipulation: IAM policies modifiable via
LoadPolicy - Configuration Changes: Cluster replication config alterable
Availability Impact: HIGH
- Data Destruction: Buckets/volumes deletable via
DeleteBucket/DeleteVolume - Service Disruption: Service controllable via
SignalService - Cluster Degradation: Replication corruption via
ReloadSiteReplicationConfig - Resource Exhaustion: Arbitrary data writes, bucket creation
Compliance & Regulatory Impact
Standards Violated
PCI-DSS v4.0
- Requirement 6.5.3: Broken authentication
- Requirement 8.2: Strong authentication required
- Requirement 8.6: Multi-factor authentication required
OWASP Top 10 2021
- A07:2021 - Identification and Authentication Failures
- Use of hard-coded credentials
- Missing or ineffective authentication
CWE (Common Weakness Enumeration)
- CWE-798: Use of Hard-coded Credentials (Rank: 37/400)
- CWE-1391: Use of Weak Credentials
- CWE-287: Improper Authentication
NIST Cybersecurity Framework
- PR.AC-1: Access control mechanisms violated
- PR.AC-7: Authentication mechanisms insufficient
SOC 2 Type II
- CC6.1: Logical access controls inadequate
- CC6.6: Credential management controls missing
Legal & Business Impact
- Data Breach Notification: GDPR Art. 33, CCPA §1798.150
- Regulatory Fines: GDPR up to €20M or 4% annual revenue
- Customer Trust: Severe reputational damage
- Service Disruption: SLA violations, customer compensation
- Incident Response Costs: Forensics, remediation, legal fees
Proof of Concept
Automated POC Script
File: audit_analysis/poc_cve_2025_008_grpc_token_working.sh
Usage:
Default Target: localhost:9000
POC Features
-
✅ Baseline Authentication Testing
- Verifies unauthenticated requests are rejected
- Verifies incorrect tokens are rejected
-
✅ Exploit Demonstration
- Authenticates using hardcoded token
- Calls
Pingservice successfully
-
✅ Sensitive API Access
- Accesses
ServerInfo(configuration disclosure) - Accesses
DiskInfo(system information) - Demonstrates authenticated access to management APIs
- Accesses
-
✅ Detailed Reporting
- Displays vulnerable code locations
- Lists all affected APIs (50+ methods)
- Provides CVSS scoring and impact analysis
- Includes remediation recommendations
POC Output Summary
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank bilisheep from the Xmirror Security Team for discovering and responsibly reporting this vulnerability.
Пакеты
rustfs
>= 1.0.0-alpha.13, <= 1.0.0-alpha.77
1.0.0-alpha.78
Связанные уязвимости
RustFS is a distributed object storage system built in Rust. In versions prior to 1.0.0-alpha.78, RustFS implements gRPC authentication using a hardcoded static token `"rustfs rpc"` that is publicly exposed in the source code repository, hardcoded on both client and server sides, non-configurable with no mechanism for token rotation, and universally valid across all RustFS deployments. Any attacker with network access to the gRPC port can authenticate using this publicly known token and execute privileged operations including data destruction, policy manipulation, and cluster configuration changes. Version 1.0.0-alpha.78 contains a fix for the issue.
Уязвимость прикладного программного интерфейса аутентификации gRPC распределенной системы хранения данных RustFS, позволяющая нарушителю обойти существующие механизмы безопасности и получить несанкционированный доступ к системе