How severe is CVE-2022-39272?

CVE-2022-39272 has a CVSS score of 5/10, rated MEDIUM. Review your exposure and patch according to your risk tolerance.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2022-39272?

CVE-2022-39272 affects the following packages: github.com/fluxcd/flux2 (Go), github.com/fluxcd/source-controller (Go), github.com/fluxcd/kustomize-controller (Go), github.com/fluxcd/helm-controller (Go), github.com/fluxcd/notification-controller (Go), github.com/fluxcd/image-automation-controller (Go), github.com/fluxcd/image-reflector-controller (Go), github.com/fluxcd/helm-controller/api (Go), and 5 more. Ecosystems affected: Go.

How do I fix CVE-2022-39272?

Update github.com/fluxcd/flux2 to 0.35.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2022-39272 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect CVE-2022-39272 in my Go dependencies?

Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/fluxcd/flux2, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.

How do I mitigate CVE-2022-39272 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

Cap what an attacker can consume: apply request size, rate and timeout limits in front of the affected component, and run it with memory and CPU limits so exhaustion degrades one worker rather than the whole service.

Is CVE-2022-39272 actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for CVE-2022-39272 yet. This does not mean the vulnerability cannot be exploited — absence of public exploits does not imply safety. Apply the recommended fix and use O3 Security to monitor your exposure.

What is the EPSS score for CVE-2022-39272?

CVE-2022-39272 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 0.8%, placing it in the 56th percentile of all CVEs. EPSS is maintained by FIRST.org and estimates the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. This score indicates relatively lower exploitation probability, though the CVSS severity should still guide your patching priority.

What type of vulnerability is CVE-2022-39272?

CVE-2022-39272 is classified as CWE-1284 (CWE-1284). This weakness type describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation.

When was CVE-2022-39272 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2022-39272 was published on October 21, 2022 and was last updated on October 28, 2026. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

🐹

🐹 Go

Not in CISA KEV

MEDIUM severity

CVE-2022-39272 — flux2

MEDIUMFix: fluxcd/helm-controller#533

CVE-2022-39272 is a medium-severity (CVSS 5) CWE-1284 vulnerability in github.com/fluxcd/flux2. A fix is available for github.com/fluxcd/flux2 — see the affected versions and patch details below.

Flux2 vulnerable to Denial of Service due to Improper use of metav1.Duration

Also known asBIT-flux-2022-39272BIT-kustomize-2022-39272GHSA-f4p5-x4vc-mh4vGO-2022-1071

Published

Oct 21, 2022

Updated

Oct 28, 2026

Affected

13 pkgs

Patched

13 / 13

Exploits

None indexed

Exploitation data as of Nov 4, 2026 · OSV.dev, NVD, FIRST.org (EPSS)

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

0.8%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Lower Risk0.00%

Lower risk than most CVEs56th percentile — riskier than 56% of all scored CVEsHighest risk

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.

How urgent is this, really

Where this sits among everything scored

Real-World Exposure

13 pkgs affected

🐹github.com/fluxcd/flux2🐹github.com/fluxcd/source-controller🐹github.com/fluxcd/kustomize-controller🐹github.com/fluxcd/helm-controller🐹github.com/fluxcd/notification-controller🐹github.com/fluxcd/image-automation-controller🐹github.com/fluxcd/image-reflector-controller🐹github.com/fluxcd/helm-controller/api+5 more

Real-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

The issue has two root causes: a) the Kubernetes type metav1.Duration not being fully compatible with the Go type time.Duration as explained on upstream report; b) lack of validation within Flux to restrict allowed values.

Workarounds

Admission controllers can be employed to restrict the values that can be used for fields .spec.interval and .spec.timeout, however upgrading to the latest versions is still the recommended mitigation.

Credits

This issue was reported by Alexander Block (@codablock) through the Flux security mailing list (as recommended).

For more information

If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:

Open an issue in any of the affected repositories.
Contact us at the CNCF Flux channel.

References

https://github.com/kubernetes/apimachinery/issues/131

Affected Packages

13 total 13 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
🐹Go	`github.com/fluxcd/flux2`	≥ 0.1.0&&< 0.35.0	0.35.0`go get github.com/fluxcd/flux2@v0.35.0`
🐹Go	`github.com/fluxcd/source-controller`	≥ 0.0.1-alpha-1&&< 0.30.0	0.30.0`go get github.com/fluxcd/source-controller@v0.30.0`
🐹Go	`github.com/fluxcd/kustomize-controller`	≥ 0.0.1-alpha-1&&< 0.29.0	0.29.0`go get github.com/fluxcd/kustomize-controller@v0.29.0`
🐹Go	`github.com/fluxcd/helm-controller`	≥ 0.0.1-alpha-1&&< 0.24.0	0.24.0`go get github.com/fluxcd/helm-controller@v0.24.0`
🐹Go	`github.com/fluxcd/notification-controller`	≥ 0.0.1-alpha-1&&< 0.27.0	0.27.0`go get github.com/fluxcd/notification-controller@v0.27.0`
🐹Go	`github.com/fluxcd/image-automation-controller`	≥ 0.1.0&&< 0.26.0	0.26.0`go get github.com/fluxcd/image-automation-controller@v0.26.0`

Affected Products

7 products · 35 configurations

Application

flux2fluxcd

≥ 0.1.0 && < 0.35.0

range

Application

helm-controllerfluxcd

≥ 0.0.2 && < 0.24.0

1 version

0.0.1

Application

image-automation-controllerfluxcd

≥ 0.1.0 && < 0.26.0

range

Application

image-reflector-controllerfluxcd

≥ 0.1.0 && < 0.22.0

range

Application

kustomize-controllerfluxcd

≥ 0.0.2 && < 0.29.0

1 version

0.0.1

Application

notification-controllerfluxcd

≥ 0.0.2 && < 0.27.0

1 version

0.0.1

Detection & mitigation playbook

Open-source dependency

Detect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/fluxcd/flux2, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/fluxcd/flux2 to 0.35.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2022-39272 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Cap what an attacker can consume: apply request size, rate and timeout limits in front of the affected component, and run it with memory and CPU limits so exhaustion degrades one worker rather than the whole service.

Frequently Asked Questions

Flux controllers within the affected versions range are vulnerable to a denial of service attack. Users that have permissions to change Flux’s objects, either through a Flux source or directly within a cluster, can provide invalid data to fields `.spec.interval` or `.spec.timeout` (and structured variations of these fields), causing the entire object type to stop being processed. The issue has two root causes: a) the Kubernetes type `metav1.Duration` not being fully compatible with the Go type `time.Duration` as explained on [upstream report](https://github.com/kubernetes/apimachinery/issues/