CVE-2024-31141 — Apache Kafka Clients: Privilege escalation to filesystem read-access via automatic ConfigProvider
Files or Directories Accessible to External Parties, Improper Privilege Management vulnerability in Apache Kafka Clients. Apache Kafka Clients accept configuration data for customizing behavior, and includes ConfigProvider plugins in order to manipulate these configurations. Apache Kafka also provides FileConfigProvider, DirectoryConfigProvider, and EnvVarConfigProvider implementations which include the ability to read from disk or environment variables. In applications where Apache Kafka Clients configurations can be specified by an untrusted party, attackers may use these ConfigProviders to read arbitrary contents of the disk and environment variables. In particular, this flaw may be used in Apache Kafka Connect to escalate from REST API access to filesystem/environment access, which may be undesirable in certain environments, including SaaS products. This issue affects Apache Kafka Clients: from 2.3.0 through 3.5.2, 3.6.2, 3.7.0. Users with affected applications are recommended to upgrade kafka-clients to version >=3.8.0, and set the JVM system property "org.apache.kafka.automatic.config.providers=none". Users of Kafka Connect with one of the listed ConfigProvider implementations specified in their worker config are also recommended to add appropriate "allowlist.pattern" and "allowed.paths" to restrict their operation to appropriate bounds. For users of Kafka Clients or Kafka Connect in environments that trust users with disk and environment variable access, it is not recommended to set the system property. For users of the Kafka Broker, Kafka MirrorMaker 2.0, Kafka Streams, and Kafka command-line tools, it is not recommended to set the system property.
Who exploits it and how urgent it is
A 0–100 score combining confirmed exploitation, ransomware and APT use, public exploits, EPSS and severity.
How the score was calculated
- EPSS 1.3% (30-day exploitation probability)+11
- Technical severity (medium)+3
The score orders the patch queue; it does not replace your asset context (internet exposure, criticality, compensating controls).
Triage
Is it exploited, how likely is exploitation, what does it touch, and how severe do the sources call it.
CISA SSVC assessment CISA
Three decision points CISA publishes for the CVEs it assesses (SSVC 2.0.3). A stakeholder decision, not a severity score.
Remediation
Fixes and mitigations documented by the sources — linked to the original advisory.
- Maven Org.apache.kafka:kafka-clients: fixed in version 3.7.1 — github.com (GitHub Security Advisories)
First 24 hours
Ordered from the record’s own fields — exposure first, because you cannot patch what you have not found. A rule-generated starting point.
- Identify exposed assets running the affected vendor/product/version combinations (Apache Software Foundation Apache Kafka Clients, Apache Software Foundation Kafka, Maven Org.apache.kafka:kafka-clients).
- Apply the fixed version or the patch documented under Remediation.
- Search available logs for exploit probes matching the vulnerability class (privilege escalation), errors and authentication anomalies.
Affected scope
Vendor, product and versions as the sources word them.
| Vendor | Product | Versions | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apache Software Foundation | Apache Kafka Clients | ≥ 2.3.0 and ≤ 3.5.2≥ 3.6.0 and ≤ 3.6.2version 3.7.0 | Vulnerable | CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP |
| Apache Software Foundation | Kafka | ≥ 2.3.0 and ≤ 3.5.2≥ 3.6.0 and ≤ 3.6.2version 3.7.0 | Vulnerable | NIST National Vulnerability Database |
| Maven | Org.apache.kafka:kafka-clients | ≥ 2.3.0 and < 3.7.1 | Vulnerable | GitHub Security Advisories |
Attack characteristics
The CVSS vector, decoded. It describes the attack, not your exposure to it.
Every base score collected
Sources score independently and may disagree; each row says who scored it and under which version.
| Score | Version | Severity | Expl. | Impact | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6.5 | CVSS 3.1 | Medium | 2.8 | 3.6 | 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0 via NIST National Vulnerability Database |
| 6.5 | CVSS 3.1 | Medium | — | — | GitHub, Inc. via GitHub Security Advisories |
| 6.5 | CVSS 3.1 | Medium | — | — | CISA-ADP via CVE Program (cve.org) e CISA ADP |
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N (score shown at the top: 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0) Weakness MITRE
Weakness class according to MITRE’s CWE catalog.
EPSS over time FIRST
Oct 28, 2026 → Oct 29, 2026 · 2 reading(s) · max 1.33%
Detection
Read off the CVSS vector and the weakness class. Starting points, not tested rules.
- Prioritize edge telemetry for the network-reachable component (proxy, WAF, IDS/IPS).
Timeline
What happened to this CVE, newest first.
- 2026
- Fix documented
- Affected products added · maven/org.apache.kafka:kafka-clients
- Affected products added · apache software foundation/apache kafka clients
- SSVC assessment updated
- Record published
- Affected products added · apache/kafka
- CVSS changed · 6.5
- Source status changed · → Analyzed
- Record created in this database
- 2024
- CVE published
Source activity
Repeated readings are counted rather than listed.
- 2× References added · Oct 28, 2026 – Oct 28, 2026
- 1× Official description updated · Oct 28, 2026 – Oct 28, 2026
References
6 on the record
Elsewhere on this site
Related CVEs (same products)
- Unknown CVE-2026-83525 Apache Kafka: Incorrect boolean operator in FetchSnapshot RPC handler allows authenticated network clients to crash the KRaft controller via a malformed request. 2d
- Unknown CVE-2026-116593 Apache Kafka: Kafka Connect configuration provider values exposed via validation REST API endpoint 2d
- Unknown CVE-2026-115644 Apache Kafka: Connect Admin REST API Authentication Bypass via Unapplied REST Extensions 2d
- Unknown CVE-2026-114349 Apache Kafka: Denial of service via unbounded memory allocation when decoding compressed record batches 2d
- Unknown CVE-2026-112375 Apache Kafka: Unauthorized principal can read arbitrary broker files via IncrementalAlterConfigs 2d
- Unknown CVE-2026-111496 Apache Kafka: Kafka Streams StreamThread hang from integer overflow in stream-time punctuation 2d
Not in any source we poll
Listed rather than left blank: an empty field and an unmeasured one look identical on screen, and only one is a reason to look elsewhere.
- No confirmed IOCs, IP addresses, domains, file hashes, or malware artifacts supplied.
- No organization-specific asset inventory, compensating-control status, or patch deployment evidence supplied.
- No exploit packet captures, log samples, or incident case IDs supplied.
Answered from this record
Text assembled only from the fields above — no additional claims.
What should defenders know first?
CVE-2024-31141 is "Apache Kafka Clients: Privilege escalation to filesystem read-access via automatic ConfigProvider", rated Medium. It affects Apache Kafka Clients (Apache Software Foundation); versions are in the scope table. It is not in CISA KEV, which does not rule out exploitation. CVSS 6.5 describes technical severity. EPSS 1.33% estimates the probability of exploitation in 30 days; neither replaces your asset context. First verify whether exposed or business-critical assets run the affected versions, apply vendor fixes or mitigations, and preserve logs for review.
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