CVE-2021-21299

Multiple Transfer-Encoding headers misinterprets request payload

Description

hyper is an open-source HTTP library for Rust (crates.io). In hyper from version 0.12.0 and before versions 0.13.10 and 0.14.3 there is a vulnerability that can enable a request smuggling attack. The HTTP server code had a flaw that incorrectly understands some requests with multiple transfer-encoding headers to have a chunked payload, when it should have been rejected as illegal. This combined with an upstream HTTP proxy that understands the request payload boundary differently can result in "request smuggling" or "desync attacks". To determine if vulnerable, all these things must be true: 1) Using hyper as an HTTP server (the client is not affected), 2) Using HTTP/1.1 (HTTP/2 does not use transfer-encoding), 3) Using a vulnerable HTTP proxy upstream to hyper. If an upstream proxy correctly rejects the illegal transfer-encoding headers, the desync attack cannot succeed. If there is no proxy upstream of hyper, hyper cannot start the desync attack, as the client will repair the headers before forwarding. This is fixed in versions 0.14.3 and 0.13.10. As a workaround one can take the following options: 1) Reject requests that contain a `transfer-encoding` header, 2) Ensure any upstream proxy handles `transfer-encoding` correctly.

Category

4.8
CVSS
Severity: Medium
CVSS 3.1 •
CVSS 2.0 •
EPSS 0.58%
Third-Party Advisory crates.io Third-Party Advisory github.com Third-Party Advisory github.com Third-Party Advisory portswigger.net Third-Party Advisory rustsec.org
Affected: hyperium hyper
Published at:
Updated at:

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the severity of CVE-2021-21299?
CVE-2021-21299 has been scored as a medium severity vulnerability.
How to fix CVE-2021-21299?
To fix CVE-2021-21299, make sure you are using an up-to-date version of the affected component(s) by checking the vendor release notes. As for now, there are no other specific guidelines available.
Is CVE-2021-21299 being actively exploited in the wild?
As for now, there are no information to confirm that CVE-2021-21299 is being actively exploited. According to its EPSS score, there is a ~1% probability that this vulnerability will be exploited by malicious actors in the next 30 days.
What software or system is affected by CVE-2021-21299?
CVE-2021-21299 affects hyperium hyper.
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