CVE-2021-41190 : What You Need to Know
Learn about CVE-2021-41190, a vulnerability in OCI Distribution Specification impacting Open Container Initiative's distribution spec. Find out the impact, technical details, affected systems, and mitigation steps.
The OCI Distribution Spec project prior to version 1.0.1 had a vulnerability causing confusion in document interpretation due to the Content-Type header. This CVE clarifies the handling of Content-Type in the OCI spec.
Understanding CVE-2021-41190
This CVE addresses a vulnerability in the OCI Distribution Specification related to Content-Type handling, impacting Open Container Initiative's distribution specification.
What is CVE-2021-41190?
The OCI Distribution Spec project had an issue where the Content-Type header caused ambiguity in document interpretation during push and pull operations, potentially leading to different content interpretation between pulls.
The Impact of CVE-2021-41190
The impact of this CVE is rated as low severity with a CVSS base score of 3. The attack complexity is high, requiring user interaction, but with low privileges required and no confidentiality impact.
Technical Details of CVE-2021-41190
This section covers the technical details of CVE-2021-41190.
Vulnerability Description
In version 1.0.0 and earlier of the OCI Distribution Spec, the Content-Type header alone determined the document type during push and pull operations, leading to potential misinterpretation of documents due to ambiguous Content-Type headers.
Affected Systems and Versions
- Product: distribution-spec
- Vendor: opencontainers
- Versions Affected: < 1.0.1
Exploitation Mechanism
The vulnerability arises from inconsistencies in interpreting documents with both 'manifests' and 'layers' fields without a clear Content-Type header, causing clients to potentially misinterpret content.
Mitigation and Prevention
Steps to take to mitigate the vulnerability in CVE-2021-41190.
Immediate Steps to Take
- Update to version 1.0.1 of the OCI Distribution Spec.
- Ensure mediaType value in a manifest or index matches the Content-Type header during push and pull operations.
- Clients pulling from a registry should be cautious of ambiguous documents.
Long-Term Security Practices
- Regularly update software dependencies to the latest secure versions.
- Implement content validation mechanisms to ensure accurate interpretation of documents.
Patching and Updates
Stay informed about security advisories and updates from the OCI Distribution Spec project to address vulnerabilities like the one in CVE-2021-41190.