CVE-2025-27819: Apache Kafka: Possible RCE/Denial of service attack via SASL JAAS JndiLoginModule configuration

[Luke Chen <showuon () apache org>]

Severity: important 

Affected versions:

- Apache Kafka 2.0.0 through 3.3.2

Description:

In CVE-2023-25194, we announced the RCE/Denial of service attack via SASL JAAS JndiLoginModule configuration in Kafka 
Connect API. But not only Kafka Connect API is vulnerable to this attack, the Apache Kafka brokers also have this 
vulnerability. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker needs to be able to connect to the Kafka cluster and have 
the AlterConfigs permission on the cluster resource.


Since Apache Kafka 3.4.0, we have added a system property ("-Dorg.apache.kafka.disallowed.login.modules") to disable 
the problematic login modules usage in SASL JAAS configuration. Also by default 
"com.sun.security.auth.module.JndiLoginModule" is disabled in Apache Kafka 3.4.0, and 
"com.sun.security.auth.module.JndiLoginModule,com.sun.security.auth.module.LdapLoginModule" is disabled by default in 
in Apache Kafka 3.9.1/4.0.0

Credit:

Ziyang Li (finder)
Ji'an Zhou (finder)
Ying Zhu (finder)

References:

https://kafka.apache.org/
https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-27819