CVE-2026-16543 (GCVE-0-2026-16543)
Vulnerability from cvelistv5 – Published: 2026-07-29 15:29 – Updated: 2026-07-29 17:57
VLAI
EPSS
VEX
Title
Kong Operator cluster-wide ingress configuration DoS via embedded KIC CA-certificate ID collision
Summary
Kong Operator's embedded Kong Kubernetes Ingress Controller (KIC) allows a user with namespace-scoped Secret creation privileges to cause a cluster-wide ingress configuration denial of service. The embedded KIC collects CA-certificate Secrets across all watched namespaces using a label selector alone, without ingress-class or namespace restrictions. The CA-certificate primary key is derived from a user-supplied field in the Secret. Duplicate CA-certificate IDs cause Kong Gateway to reject the entire configuration document and halting all ingress changes cluster-wide.
Severity
SSVC
Exploitation: none
Automatable: no
Technical Impact: partial
CISA Coordinator · CISA-ADP (v2.0.3)
Decision recorded 2026-07-29 17:57 UTC
Assigner
References
1 reference
Impacted products
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"value": "\u003cp\u003eYou are affected if\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eall\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003eof the following hold:\u003c/p\u003e\u003col\u003e\u003cli\u003eYou are running Kong Operator with an on-prem Gateway, managed via a\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003ccode\u003eControlPlane\u003c/code\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003eresource that uses the embedded KIC.\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eThe\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003eControlPlane\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003eis configured with\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003ccode\u003espec.watchNamespaces.type: All\u003c/code\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e, causing the embedded KIC to watch Secrets cluster-wide.\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eYour cluster hosts\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003emultiple tenants\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003ewhere not all users are fully trusted operators.\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eUntrusted users have RBAC permission to\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ecreate Secrets\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003ein any namespace watched by the\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003eControlPlane\u003c/code\u003e, and are not prevented from applying both the\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003ekonghq.com/secret=true\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003eand\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003ekonghq.com/ca-cert=true\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003elabels.\u003c/li\u003e\u003c/ol\u003e\u003cp\u003eYou are\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003eaffected if:\u003c/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\u003cli\u003eThe\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003eControlPlane\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003euses\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003espec.watchNamespaces.type: Own\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003eor a tightly scoped\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003espec.watchNamespaces.type: List\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003ecovering only namespaces whose users are all fully trusted.\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eRBAC policies prevent untrusted users from creating Secrets with the labels\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003ekonghq.com/secret=true\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003eand\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003ekonghq.com/ca-cert=true\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003ein any namespace watched by the\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003eControlPlane\u003c/code\u003e.\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003eYou are using Kong Operator exclusively with Konnect-managed control planes (the vulnerability is in the embedded on-prem KIC path only).\u003c/li\u003e\u003c/ul\u003e"
}
],
"value": "You are affected if\u00a0all\u00a0of the following hold:\n\n * You are running Kong Operator with an on-prem Gateway, managed via a\u00a0ControlPlane\u00a0resource that uses the embedded KIC.\n * The\u00a0ControlPlane\u00a0is configured with\u00a0spec.watchNamespaces.type: All, causing the embedded KIC to watch Secrets cluster-wide.\n * Your cluster hosts\u00a0multiple tenants\u00a0where not all users are fully trusted operators.\n * Untrusted users have RBAC permission to\u00a0create Secrets\u00a0in any namespace watched by the\u00a0ControlPlane, and are not prevented from applying both the\u00a0konghq.com/secret=true\u00a0and\u00a0konghq.com/ca-cert=true\u00a0labels.\n\n\nYou are\u00a0not\u00a0affected if:\n\n * The\u00a0ControlPlane\u00a0uses\u00a0spec.watchNamespaces.type: Own\u00a0or a tightly scoped\u00a0spec.watchNamespaces.type: List\u00a0covering only namespaces whose users are all fully trusted.\n * RBAC policies prevent untrusted users from creating Secrets with the labels\u00a0konghq.com/secret=true\u00a0and\u00a0konghq.com/ca-cert=true\u00a0in any namespace watched by the\u00a0ControlPlane.\n * You are using Kong Operator exclusively with Konnect-managed control planes (the vulnerability is in the embedded on-prem KIC path only)."
}
],
"descriptions": [
{
"lang": "en",
"supportingMedia": [
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"value": "\u003cp\u003eKong Operator\u0027s embedded Kong Kubernetes Ingress Controller (KIC) allows a user with namespace-scoped Secret creation privileges to cause a cluster-wide ingress configuration denial of service. The embedded KIC collects CA-certificate Secrets across all watched namespaces using a label selector alone, without ingress-class or namespace restrictions. T\u003cspan\u003ehe CA-certificate primary key is derived from a user-supplied field in the Secret. Duplicate CA-certificate IDs cause Kong Gateway to reject the entire configuration document and halting all ingress changes cluster-wide.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e"
}
],
"value": "Kong Operator\u0027s embedded Kong Kubernetes Ingress Controller (KIC) allows a user with namespace-scoped Secret creation privileges to cause a cluster-wide ingress configuration denial of service. The embedded KIC collects CA-certificate Secrets across all watched namespaces using a label selector alone, without ingress-class or namespace restrictions. The CA-certificate primary key is derived from a user-supplied field in the Secret. Duplicate CA-certificate IDs cause Kong Gateway to reject the entire configuration document and halting all ingress changes cluster-wide."
}
],
"impacts": [
{
"capecId": "CAPEC-240",
"descriptions": [
{
"lang": "en",
"value": "CAPEC-240 Resource Injection"
}
]
},
{
"descriptions": [
{
"lang": "en",
"value": "Denial of Service"
}
]
}
],
"metrics": [
{
"cvssV4_0": {
"Automatable": "NOT_DEFINED",
"Recovery": "NOT_DEFINED",
"Safety": "NOT_DEFINED",
"attackComplexity": "LOW",
"attackRequirements": "NONE",
"attackVector": "NETWORK",
"baseScore": 7.1,
"baseSeverity": "HIGH",
"exploitMaturity": "NOT_DEFINED",
"privilegesRequired": "LOW",
"providerUrgency": "NOT_DEFINED",
"subAvailabilityImpact": "NONE",
"subConfidentialityImpact": "NONE",
"subIntegrityImpact": "NONE",
"userInteraction": "NONE",
"valueDensity": "NOT_DEFINED",
"vectorString": "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N",
"version": "4.0",
"vulnAvailabilityImpact": "HIGH",
"vulnConfidentialityImpact": "NONE",
"vulnIntegrityImpact": "NONE",
"vulnerabilityResponseEffort": "NOT_DEFINED"
},
"format": "CVSS",
"scenarios": [
{
"lang": "en",
"value": "GENERAL"
}
]
}
],
"problemTypes": [
{
"descriptions": [
{
"cweId": "CWE-862",
"description": "CWE-862",
"lang": "en",
"type": "CWE"
}
]
},
{
"descriptions": [
{
"cweId": "CWE-400",
"description": "CWE-400",
"lang": "en",
"type": "CWE"
}
]
}
],
"providerMetadata": {
"dateUpdated": "2026-07-29T15:29:03.485Z",
"orgId": "02762ae7-200e-4b20-9b2b-a77d5b8fc4cb",
"shortName": "Kong"
},
"references": [
{
"url": "https://github.com/Kong/kong-operator/security/advisories/GHSA-h4fh-j7xg-vwcx"
}
],
"solutions": [
{
"lang": "en",
"supportingMedia": [
{
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"value": "\u003cspan\u003eUpgrade to the patched version of Kong Operator: 2.2.3, 2.1.9 or 2.0.11.\u003c/span\u003e"
}
],
"value": "Upgrade to the patched version of Kong Operator: 2.2.3, 2.1.9 or 2.0.11."
}
],
"source": {
"discovery": "INTERNAL"
},
"title": "Kong Operator cluster-wide ingress configuration DoS via embedded KIC CA-certificate ID collision",
"workarounds": [
{
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"value": "\u003cstrong\u003e1. Restrict\u0026nbsp;\u003ccode\u003eControlPlane\u003c/code\u003e\u0026nbsp;watch scope\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e: Change\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003espec.watchNamespaces.type\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003efrom\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003eAll\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eto\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003eOwn\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eor a narrowly defined\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003eList\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003ethat covers only namespaces whose users are trusted operators. This prevents the embedded KIC from ingesting Secrets from untrusted namespaces.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e2. Restrict Secret labeling via RBAC\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e: Use Kubernetes RBAC to prevent untrusted users from creating or modifying Secrets with the labels\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003ekonghq.com/secret=true\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eand\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003ekonghq.com/ca-cert=true\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e. Consider using an admission webhook or OPA/Kyverno policy to enforce this label restriction.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e3. Audit existing CA-cert Secrets\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e: Inspect Secrets labeled\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003ekonghq.com/ca-cert=true\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eacross all watched namespaces for unexpected or duplicate\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003ccode\u003edata.id\u003c/code\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003evalues. Remove any that were not provisioned by a trusted operator.\u003c/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"
}
],
"value": "1. Restrict\u00a0ControlPlane\u00a0watch scope: Change\u00a0spec.watchNamespaces.type\u00a0from\u00a0All\u00a0to\u00a0Own\u00a0or a narrowly defined\u00a0List\u00a0that covers only namespaces whose users are trusted operators. This prevents the embedded KIC from ingesting Secrets from untrusted namespaces.2. Restrict Secret labeling via RBAC: Use Kubernetes RBAC to prevent untrusted users from creating or modifying Secrets with the labels\u00a0konghq.com/secret=true\u00a0and\u00a0konghq.com/ca-cert=true. Consider using an admission webhook or OPA/Kyverno policy to enforce this label restriction.\n\n\n3. Audit existing CA-cert Secrets: Inspect Secrets labeled\u00a0konghq.com/ca-cert=true\u00a0across all watched namespaces for unexpected or duplicate\u00a0data.id\u00a0values. Remove any that were not provisioned by a trusted operator."
}
],
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},
"cveMetadata": {
"assignerOrgId": "02762ae7-200e-4b20-9b2b-a77d5b8fc4cb",
"assignerShortName": "Kong",
"cveId": "CVE-2026-16543",
"datePublished": "2026-07-29T15:29:03.485Z",
"dateReserved": "2026-07-22T09:53:31.062Z",
"dateUpdated": "2026-07-29T17:57:21.328Z",
"state": "PUBLISHED"
},
"dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
"dataVersion": "5.2"
}
}
}
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Experimental. This forecast is provided for visualization only and may change without notice. Do not use it for operational decisions.
Forecast uses a logistic model when the trend is rising, or an exponential decay model when the trend is falling. Fitted via linearized least squares.
Sightings
| Author | Source | Type | Date | Other |
|---|
Nomenclature
- Seen: The vulnerability was mentioned, discussed, or observed by the user.
- Confirmed: The vulnerability has been validated from an analyst's perspective.
- Published Proof of Concept: A public proof of concept is available for this vulnerability.
- Exploited: The vulnerability was observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
- Patched: The vulnerability was observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
- Not exploited: The vulnerability was not observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
- Not confirmed: The user expressed doubt about the validity of the vulnerability.
- Not patched: The vulnerability was not observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
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The MITRE ATT&CK techniques below are AI-generated suggestions, inferred from the description of the
vulnerability by the CIRCL/vulnerability-attack-technique-classification-roberta-base
model, served locally by ML-Gateway.
They have not been verified by an analyst and are provided for guidance only.
The approach is described in our paper Mapping CVEs to MITRE ATT&CK Techniques: A Curated Gold-Set Classifier and the Limits of LLM-Assisted Label Expansion.
Browse all ATT&CK techniques and the vulnerabilities related to each.
The approach is described in our paper Mapping CVEs to MITRE ATT&CK Techniques: A Curated Gold-Set Classifier and the Limits of LLM-Assisted Label Expansion.
Browse all ATT&CK techniques and the vulnerabilities related to each.
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Related by attack behaviour
Vulnerabilities whose description is nearest to this one in the vector space of the CIRCL/vulnerability-attack-technique-biencoder model. This is a similarity search over the bi-encoder space (plain cosine), not a classification, and it has no measured accuracy.
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