CVE-2021-43811
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability allows arbitrary code execution through malicious YAML configuration files in Sockeye neural machine translation framework. Attackers can embed malicious code in model config files and trick users into running them. Users who download and run untrusted Sockeye models are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- Sockeye neural machine translation framework
📦 What is this software?
Sockeye by Amazon
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete system compromise with attacker gaining full control of the victim's machine, data theft, and lateral movement within the network.
Likely Case
Local privilege escalation, data exfiltration, or installation of persistent malware on the user's system.
If Mitigated
No impact if users only run trusted models from verified sources with proper security controls.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires social engineering to convince users to run malicious models, but the technical execution is straightforward once a malicious config file is loaded.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 2.3.24
Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/awslabs/sockeye/security/advisories/GHSA-ggmr-44cv-24pm
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Update Sockeye to version 2.3.24 or higher using pip: pip install --upgrade sockeye>=2.3.24
2. Verify the installation with: python -c "import sockeye; print(sockeye.__version__)"
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Use only trusted model files
allOnly load Sockeye models from trusted, verified sources. Do not run models from untrusted origins.
Manual YAML sanitization
allInspect YAML configuration files for suspicious content before loading them with Sockeye.
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict access controls to prevent downloading or running untrusted Sockeye models
- Run Sockeye in isolated containers or sandboxed environments to limit potential damage
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Sockeye version: python -c "import sockeye; print(sockeye.__version__)". If version is below 2.3.24, the system is vulnerable.Check Version:
python -c "import sockeye; print(sockeye.__version__)"Verify Fix Applied:
After updating, verify version is 2.3.24 or higher using the same command and test loading a known-safe YAML config file.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unexpected process execution from Sockeye processes
- Unusual file system or network activity from Sockeye
Network Indicators:
- Outbound connections from Sockeye to unexpected destinations
SIEM Query:
Process creation where parent process contains 'sockeye' or 'python' and command line contains suspicious patterns🔗 References
- https://github.com/awslabs/sockeye/pull/964
- https://github.com/awslabs/sockeye/releases/tag/2.3.24
- https://github.com/awslabs/sockeye/security/advisories/GHSA-ggmr-44cv-24pm
- https://github.com/awslabs/sockeye/pull/964
- https://github.com/awslabs/sockeye/releases/tag/2.3.24
- https://github.com/awslabs/sockeye/security/advisories/GHSA-ggmr-44cv-24pm
