Misconfigurations in Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) Lead to a Privilege Escalation Exploit Chain

A recent Unit 42 investigation revealed a dual privilege escalation chain impacting Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE). This exploit chain arises from specific misconfigurations in GKE’s FluentBit logging agent and Anthos Service Mesh (ASM). When combined, these issues could provide attackers with existing Kubernetes cluster access an opportunity to escalate privileges.

Kubernetes, a widely adopted open-source container platform, is enhanced by GKE’s additional features for cluster deployment and management. However, the inherent complexity of Kubernetes environments exposes them to security …

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