CVE-2024-2700 is a vulnerability in the quarkus-core framework component that arises from the way Quarkus handles environment variables during application build time. Specifically, Quarkus captures environment variables prefixed with the quarkus.* namespace from the local environment or .env files during the build process and embeds their values directly into the resulting application artifact. This means that any sensitive information set as environment variables during build—such as database credentials, flags to drop databases, or settings to trust all TLS certificates—becomes part of the built application in cleartext. If the application does not explicitly override these embedded values at runtime, the sensitive data remains exposed and can lead to dangerous behaviors, including unintended database drops or acceptance of untrusted TLS certificates. This vulnerability affects Quarkus versions 3.2.12 and 3.8.4. The CVSS v3.1 score is 7.0 (high), with an attack vector of local (AV:L), requiring low privileges (PR:L), no user interaction (UI:N), and high attack complexity (AC:H). The scope is unchanged (S:U), but the impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability is high (C:H/I:H/A:H). There are no known exploits in the wild yet. The vulnerability is limited to configuration properties in the quarkus.* namespace; application-specific properties are not affected. This issue is particularly relevant in CI/CD pipelines or developer environments where environment variables are used for testing or temporary overrides. If such variables contain sensitive or dangerous settings, they risk being embedded in production builds unintentionally.

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to the confidentiality and integrity of sensitive configuration data, especially in environments where Quarkus is used for Java application development and deployment. Exposure of sensitive environment variables can lead to unauthorized access to databases, acceptance of untrusted TLS certificates, or inadvertent destructive operations like database drops. This can cause data breaches, service disruptions, and compliance violations under regulations such as GDPR. The vulnerability also threatens availability if critical services are disrupted by embedded destructive flags. Organizations using CI/CD pipelines that inject environment variables during builds are particularly vulnerable, as secrets intended only for testing or development may be embedded into production artifacts. This risk is amplified in sectors with high regulatory scrutiny or critical infrastructure, such as finance, healthcare, and government services. The lack of known exploits in the wild currently reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, especially given the high impact if exploited.

1. Avoid setting sensitive or dangerous environment variables in the quarkus.* namespace during build time, especially in CI/CD or developer environments. 2. Use runtime configuration overrides to ensure that any sensitive or test-related properties embedded at build time are replaced with secure values at application startup. 3. Segregate build and runtime environments strictly to prevent leakage of test or CI environment variables into production builds. 4. Implement secret management solutions that inject sensitive configuration only at runtime rather than build time. 5. Monitor and audit build environments for unintended environment variables in the quarkus.* namespace. 6. Upgrade to patched versions of Quarkus once available, or apply vendor-provided patches promptly. 7. Educate developers and DevOps teams about the risks of embedding sensitive environment variables in build artifacts. 8. Review application build processes to ensure no sensitive data is captured inadvertently. 9. Consider scanning built artifacts for embedded secrets as part of security validation before deployment.