Apache ZooKeeper: Operational log forgery via newline injection in EnsembleAuthenticationProvider
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · Low · None
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 1 fixed, 6 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CISA ADP. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat.
Summary
An unauthenticated attacker can inject arbitrary fake log lines into Apache ZooKeeper's operational log by sending a crafted add_auth("ensemble", ...) request containing newline characters (\n). When the ensemble name doesn't match, EnsembleAuthenticationProvider.handleAuthentication() logs the raw, unsanitized name via LOG.warn(). Because SLF4J's {} placeholder preserves embedded newlines, the attacker can forge complete log entries — with arbitrary timestamps, log levels, class names, and messages — that are visually indistinguishable from genuine ZooKeeper log output. This issue affects Apache ZooKeeper: from 3.9.0 through 3.9.5, from 3.8.0 through 3.8.6. Users are recommended to upgrade to version 3.8.7 or 3.9.6, which fixes the issue.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- Yes
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
Remediation
Red Hat 1 advisory
- RHSA-2026:95221 Released 2026-11-04 · Red Hat rating ImportantRed Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 8.1.9 XP 6.0.7.GA release
- Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 8.1
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat AMQ Broker 7 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Fuse 7 | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform Expansion Pack | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat Offline Knowledge Portal | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI) | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat build of Apache Camel for Spring Boot 4 | Affected | No fix yet |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 8.1 | Fixed | RHSA-2026:95221 |
Not affected: 5 products
- Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 8
- Red Hat OpenShift AI (RHOAI)
- Red Hat OpenStack Platform 13 (Queens)
- Red Hat OpenStack Platform 16.2
- Red Hat build of Apache Camel 4 for Quarkus 3
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-84501
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-mm24-r27q-hxg5
- 2026-10-06 Affected versions changed · Red Hat
- 2026-11-04 Fix available: RHSA-2026:95221 · Red Hat
- 2026-11-04 Fix available: Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 8.1 · Red Hat
References
More Apache Zookeeper vulnerabilities
- TI-2017-03638 Missing authentication in Apache ZooKeeper CVSS 3.0HIGH 7.5
- TI-2023-24043 Apache ZooKeeper: Authorization bypass in SASL Quorum Peer Authentication CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.1
- TI-2021-04395 Possible request smuggling in HTTP/2 due missing validation CVSS 3.1MEDIUM 5.9
- TI-2024-34425 Apache ZooKeeper: Authentication bypass with IP-based authentication in Admin Server CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.1
- TI-2016-04336 Buffer overflow in the C cli shell in Apache Zookeeper before 3.4.9 and 3.5.x before… CVSS 3.0HIGH 8.1
- TI-2018-05789 Missing authorization in Apache ZooKeeper CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
Sources
- CVE-2026-84501 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-84501 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-mm24-r27q-hxg5 · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2026-84501 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences