GHSA-wj3p-5h3x-c74q — backup-restore-operator
MEDIUMGHSA-wj3p-5h3x-c74q is a medium-severity (CVSS 6.8) CWE-532 vulnerability in github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator. A fix is available for github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Rancher Backup Operator pod's logs leak S3 tokens
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 GHSA-wj3p-5h3x-c74q.
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
GHSA-wj3p-5h3x-c74q 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 377,166 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/rancher/backup-restore-operator🐹github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator🐹github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator🐹github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operatorReal-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
Impact
A vulnerability has been identified within the Rancher Backup Operator, resulting in the leakage of S3 tokens (both accessKey and secretKey) into the rancher-backup-operator pod's logs.
Specifically, the S3 accessKey and secretKey are exposed in the pod's logs under the following logging level conditions:
| Variable Exposed | Logging Level Condition |
|---|---|
| accessKey | trace: false (default), and debug: false (default) |
| secretKey | trace: true or debug: true |
Note: The S3 accessKey is exposed in the logs without requiring any supplementary configuration.
For further information on this attack category, please consult the associated MITRE ATT&CK - Technique - Log Enumeration.
Patches
This vulnerability is addressed by applying redaction to sensitive information that was leaking.
Patched versions of Rancher Backup Operator include: 108.0.1+up9.0.1, 107.1.2+up8.1.2, 106.0.6+up7.0.5, and 105.0.6+up6.0.3.
Workarounds
Users are advised to rotate both S3 accessKey and secretKey once they have upgraded to a fixed version, especially if logs are exported.
Users who cannot update Rancher are advised to refresh the Rancher app Repository, which should provide the ability to update just the Rancher Backup chart alone. This will patch the vulnerabilities without requiring Rancher to be updated. This will not work for Rancher clusters in an air-gap setup.
For air-gapped Rancher clusters, the Rancher version must be updated first, and then after you will find the patched version of the Rancher Backup chart to upgrade. You will also need to sync new images for the release to your image mirror.
Users who cannot update either Rancher or Rancher Backup should ensure that both debug and trace values are both false (default). Users should revert the values to the default until they can update to prevent potential leaks.
References
If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:
- Reach out to the SUSE Rancher Security team for security related inquiries.
- Open an issue in the Rancher repository.
- Verify with our support matrix and product support lifecycle.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator | ≥ 9.0.0&&< 9.0.1 | 9.0.1go get github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator@v9.0.1 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator | ≥ 8.0.0&&< 8.1.2 | 8.1.2go get github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator@v8.1.2 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator | ≥ 7.0.0&&< 7.0.5 | 7.0.5go get github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator@v7.0.5 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator | ≥ 6.0.0&&< 6.0.3 | 6.0.3go get github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator@v6.0.3 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/rancher/backup-restore-operator to 9.0.1 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-wj3p-5h3x-c74q 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 GHSA-wj3p-5h3x-c74q can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to GHSA-wj3p-5h3x-c74q. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-wj3p-5h3x-c74q in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds GHSA-wj3p-5h3x-c74q across Go dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.