BaseFortify

Publication date: 2025-10-15

Last updated on: 2025-11-04

Assigner: Apache Software Foundation

Description

This issue affects Apache Spark versions before 3.4.4, 3.5.2 and 4.0.0. Apache Spark versions before 4.0.0, 3.5.2 and 3.4.4 use an insecure default network encryption cipher for RPC communication between nodes. When spark.network.crypto.enabled is set to true (it is set to false by default), but spark.network.crypto.cipher is not explicitly configured, Spark defaults to AES in CTR mode (AES/CTR/NoPadding), which provides encryption without authentication. This vulnerability allows a man-in-the-middle attacker to modify encrypted RPC traffic undetected by flipping bits in ciphertext, potentially compromising heartbeat messages or application data and affecting the integrity of Spark workflows. To mitigate this issue, users should either configure spark.network.crypto.cipher to AES/GCM/NoPadding to enable authenticated encryption or enable SSL encryption by setting spark.ssl.enabled to true, which provides stronger transport security.

CVSS Scores

EPSS Scores

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Meta Information

Published

2025-10-15

Last Modified

2025-11-04

Generated

2026-07-06

AI Q&A

2025-10-15

EPSS Evaluated

2026-07-05

NVD

CVE-2025-55039

Affected Vendors & Products

Vendor	Product	Version / Range
apache	spark	to 3.4.4 (exc)
apache	spark	From 3.5.0 (inc) to 3.5.2 (exc)

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE

KEV

CWE ID	Description
CWE-326	The product stores or transmits sensitive data using an encryption scheme that is theoretically sound, but is not strong enough for the level of protection required.
CWE-347	The product does not verify, or incorrectly verifies, the cryptographic signature for data.

Attack-Flow Graph

Executive Summary

This vulnerability affects Apache Spark versions before 3.4.4, 3.5.2, and 4.0.0. When network encryption is enabled (spark.network.crypto.enabled=true) but the encryption cipher is not explicitly set, Spark defaults to using AES in CTR mode without authentication. This means encrypted RPC traffic between nodes can be modified by a man-in-the-middle attacker without detection, potentially compromising the integrity of heartbeat messages or application data.

Impact Analysis

An attacker performing a man-in-the-middle attack can undetectably alter encrypted RPC traffic between Spark nodes. This can compromise the integrity of critical communications such as heartbeat messages or application data, potentially disrupting Spark workflows and causing incorrect or unreliable processing results.

Mitigation Strategies

To mitigate this vulnerability, you should either configure spark.network.crypto.cipher to AES/GCM/NoPadding to enable authenticated encryption or enable SSL encryption by setting spark.ssl.enabled to true, which provides stronger transport security.

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