CVE-2022-3162 — kubernetes
MEDIUMCVE-2022-3162 is a medium-severity (CVSS 6.5) CWE-23 vulnerability in github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes. A fix is available for github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Unauthorized read of Custom Resources
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2022-3162.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2022-3162 plotted by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). The shaded corner — EPSS 50%+ and CVSS 7.0+ — is where this CVE doesn't sit, though severity or exploitability alone can still warrant action.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 378,567 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes🐹github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes🐹github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes🐹github.com/kubernetes/kubernetesReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Go packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Users authorized to list or watch one type of namespaced custom resource cluster-wide can read custom resources of a different type in the same API group without authorization. Clusters are impacted by this vulnerability if all of the following are true: 1. There are 2+ CustomResourceDefinitions sharing the same API group 2. Users have cluster-wide list or watch authorization on one of those custom resources. 3. The same users are not authorized to read another custom resource in the same API group.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes | ≥ 1.25.0&&< 1.25.4 | 1.25.4go get github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes@v1.25.4 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes | ≥ 1.24.0&&< 1.24.8 | 1.24.8go get github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes@v1.24.8 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes | ≥ 1.23.0&&< 1.23.14 | 1.23.14go get github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes@v1.23.14 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes | ≥ 1.22.0&&< 1.22.16 | 1.22.16go get github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes@v1.22.16 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes to 1.25.4 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2022-3162 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How O3 protects you
O3 Security's impact-aware SCA analyses which vulnerable code paths your application actually calls, so a match like CVE-2022-3162 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2022-3162. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Fixing This On Your OS
If you run this on a Linux distribution, patch through your package manager against the distro's own security advisory below — it tracks the exact backported fix for your release, which can ship on a different timeline (and sometimes a different severity) than the upstream project.
| Product | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.12 | openshift-0:4.12.0-202301042257.p0.g77bec7a.assembly.stream.el8 | RHSA-2022:7398 |
| Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform 4.12 | microshift-0:4.12.4-202302151633.p0.gb9fe8ac.assembly.4.12.4.el8 | RHSA-2023:0772 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2022-3162 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2022-3162 across Go dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.