Summary A vulnerability in Apache Kafka Client allows for arbitrary file read and Server-Side Request Forgery (SSRF) through misconfigured SASL/OAUTHBEARER settings, specifically the sasl.oauthbearer.token.endpoint.url and sasl.oauthbearer.jwks.endpoint.url parameters. If client configurations are influenced by untrusted input (e.g., in environments like Kafka Connect with REST API access), attackers may exploit this to read files, environment variables, or send crafted requests to unintended endpoints. This can affect watsonx.data. Vulnerability Details CVEID:CVE-2025-27818 DESCRIPTION: A possible security vulnerability has been identified in Apache Kafka. This requires access to a alterConfig to the cluster resource, or Kafka Connect worker, and the ability to create/modify connectors on it with an arbitrary Kafka client SASL JAAS config and a SASL-based security protocol, which has been possible on Kafka clusters since Apache Kafka 2.0.0 (Kafka Connect 2.3.0). When configuring the broker via config file or AlterConfig command, or connector via the Kafka Kafka Connect REST API, an authenticated operator can set the sasl.jaas.config property for any of the connector's Kafka clients to "com.sun.security.auth.module.LdapLoginModule", which can be done via the producer.override.sasl.jaas.config, consumer.override.sasl.jaas.config, or admin.override.sasl.jaas.config properties. This will allow the server to connect to the attacker's LDAP server and deserialize the LDAP…Read More
Security Bulletin: Arbitrary File Read and SSRF via Unrestricted URL Configuration in Apache Kafka Client SASL/OAUTHBEARER Settings, affects watsonx.data
