CVE-2024-45816
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability in Backstage's TechDocs plugin allows attackers to access the entire AWS S3 or GCS storage bucket contents when using those providers, bypassing intended permission checks. This affects all Backstage deployments using TechDocs with AWS S3 or Google Cloud Storage providers. Sensitive documents and files not meant for public access could be exposed.
💻 Affected Systems
- Backstage TechDocs plugin
📦 What is this software?
Backstage by Linuxfoundation
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete exposure of all files in the storage bucket, including sensitive credentials, proprietary code, internal documentation, and private data, potentially leading to data breaches and intellectual property theft.
Likely Case
Unauthorized access to technical documentation and other files stored in the bucket, potentially exposing internal systems information and proprietary knowledge.
If Mitigated
Limited exposure if bucket contains only public documentation, but still represents a permission bypass vulnerability.
🎯 Exploit Status
The vulnerability appears to be a path traversal or permission misconfiguration that allows accessing any file in the bucket. No authentication bypass is needed if the Backstage instance is accessible.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 1.10.13 of @backstage/plugin-techdocs-backend
Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/backstage/backstage/security/advisories/GHSA-39v3-f278-vj3g
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Update package.json to use @backstage/plugin-techdocs-backend version 1.10.13 or later. 2. Run npm update or yarn install. 3. Restart the Backstage application. 4. Verify the update was successful.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
No workarounds available
allThe vendor advisory states there are no known workarounds for this vulnerability
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict network access to Backstage instances to trusted networks only
- Audit and remove sensitive files from TechDocs storage buckets, or migrate to non-vulnerable storage providers
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check package.json for @backstage/plugin-techdocs-backend version. If version is less than 1.10.13 and using AWS S3 or GCS storage, the system is vulnerable.Check Version:
npm list @backstage/plugin-techdocs-backend or check package.json fileVerify Fix Applied:
Verify package.json shows @backstage/plugin-techdocs-backend version 1.10.13 or higher, and test that TechDocs functionality works correctly with proper access restrictions.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual access patterns to TechDocs endpoints, especially requests attempting to access paths outside normal documentation structure
Network Indicators:
- Multiple requests to TechDocs endpoints with varying path parameters, especially from untrusted sources
SIEM Query:
source="backstage-logs" AND (uri_path CONTAINS "/docs/" OR uri_path CONTAINS "/techdocs/") AND (status_code=200 OR status_code=403) AND (uri_path MATCHES ".*[.][.]|.*%2e%2e.*")