GHSA-xg4h-6gfc-h4m8

etcd: Watch API authorization bypass via open-ended range requests

At a glance

Published
Updated
CVE
CVE-2026-73499
Aliases
BIT-etcd-2026-73499, GO-2026-6114
CVSS_V4
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N

Description

### Impact _What kind of vulnerability is it? Who is impacted?_ A user granted READ permission on a single, exact key can use the Watch gRPC API with `clientv3.WithFromKey()` (an open-ended, "from this key to the end of the keyspace" watch) to receive watch events for every key lexicographically greater than or equal to their permitted key — not just the one key they were granted. This is an authorization bypass in etcd's RBAC enforcement for the Watch API; Range/Get and DeleteRange requests are not affected. It only affects clusters with authentication enabled — clusters running without auth already allow unrestricted read access. ### Patches _Has the problem been patched? What versions should users upgrade to?_ This vulnerability is patched in the following versions: - etcd 3.7.1 - etcd 3.6.14 - etcd 3.5.33 ### Workarounds _Is there a way for users to fix or remediate the vulnerability without upgrading?_ If upgrading is not immediately possible, the following mitigations reduce exposure: - Audit READ grants. Any READ grant — even on one key — can be leveraged via Watch to read everything after it. Review who holds READ permissions and revoke/tighten any you wouldn't trust with full read access. - Restrict network access. Limit which hosts can reach etcd's client (gRPC) port via firewall rules or network policy, reducing who can attempt exploitation. ### Reporter - Luis Toro ([@lobuhi](https://github.com/lobuhi) on Github) - Anthropic and Adam Korczynski ([@AdamKorcz](https://github.com/AdamKorcz) on Github)

Affected packages

PackageVersions
Go · go.etcd.io/etcd/v3introduced 3.7.0-alpha.0, fixed 3.7.1
Go · go.etcd.io/etcd/v3introduced 3.6.0, fixed 3.6.14
Go · go.etcd.io/etcd/v3introduced 0, fixed 3.5.33

References

Sources

SourceLicence
OSV.devCC-BY 4.0 — GitHub Advisory Database