CVE-2026-47701
Received Received - Intake

OpenTelemetry Operator Bearer Token File Exposure

Publication date: 2026-09-14

Last updated on: 2026-09-14

Assigner: GitHub, Inc.

Description
The OpenTelemetry Operator is a Kubernetes Operator for the OpenTelemetry Collector. Prior to 0.152.0, cmd/otel-allocator TargetAllocator instances with targetAllocator.prometheusCR.enabled set to true preserve a selected ServiceMonitor endpoint's bearerTokenFile value as HTTPClientConfig.Authorization.CredentialsFile. A tenant who can create or update a ServiceMonitor matched by serviceMonitorSelector and serviceMonitorNamespaceSelector can point bearerTokenFile at a file in the Collector pod, including /var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/token, and direct scraping to a tenant-controlled endpoint. The Collector reads that file at scrape time and sends its contents as bearer authorization on every scrape interval. Exploitation also requires the Collector service-account token or another sensitive file to be mounted and the Collector to reach the chosen target. The DenyFSAccessThroughSMs control was absent, allowing disclosure of the Collector's service-account JWT or other mounted files, and resulting Kubernetes API impact is limited by the Collector service account's permissions. This issue is fixed in version 0.152.0.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-09-14
Last Modified
2026-09-14
Generated
2026-09-15
AI Q&A
2026-09-14
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-47701
EUVD
EUVD-2026-77578

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 2 associated CPEs
Vendor Product Version / Range
opentelemetry opentelemetry_operator 0.152.0
open_telemetry opentelemetry_operator 0.152.0

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-200 The product exposes sensitive information to an actor that is not explicitly authorized to have access to that information.

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Executive Summary

This vulnerability in the OpenTelemetry Operator (prior to version 0.152.0) allows a tenant with permissions to create or update a ServiceMonitor to redirect the Collector's scraping to a malicious endpoint. The Collector then reads a sensitive file, such as the service account token, and sends its contents as authorization headers during each scrape. This occurs because the Target Allocator preserves the bearerTokenFile value from the ServiceMonitor, enabling unauthorized access to mounted secrets.

Detection Guidance

Check if the OpenTelemetry Operator version is below 0.152.0 by running: kubectl get deployment -n <namespace> <otel-operator-deployment> -o jsonpath='{.spec.template.spec.containers[0].image}'. If the version is older, the system is vulnerable. Inspect ServiceMonitor resources for bearerTokenFile references pointing to sensitive files like /var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/token using: kubectl get servicemonitors --all-namespaces -o yaml | grep bearerTokenFile.

Verify if DenyFSAccessThroughSMs is enabled in the Target Allocator configuration. If not present or false, the vulnerability may exist. Check logs for unauthorized scraping attempts or unexpected bearer token usage in Collector pods.

Impact Analysis

If exploited, this vulnerability could lead to unauthorized access to sensitive data, such as Kubernetes service account tokens, by redirecting the Collector to send these credentials to a malicious endpoint. This may allow attackers to impersonate the Collector's service account, potentially leading to further compromise of the Kubernetes cluster or data exfiltration.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could violate compliance requirements under GDPR and HIPAA by enabling unauthorized access to sensitive data, such as personally identifiable information or protected health information. Unauthorized access to service account tokens or other credentials may result in data breaches, leading to legal penalties, reputational damage, and loss of trust.

Mitigation Strategies

Upgrade the OpenTelemetry Operator to version 0.152.0 or later immediately. This version includes the DenyFSAccessThroughSMs feature to block ServiceMonitor endpoints referencing sensitive files.

Enable DenyFSAccessThroughSMs in the Target Allocator configuration. Set targetAllocator.denyFSAccessThroughSMs to true to filter out endpoints with bearerTokenFile or other file references.

Audit existing ServiceMonitor resources for any bearerTokenFile references pointing to sensitive paths. Remove or correct these references to prevent token exposure.

Restrict permissions of the Collector service account to limit potential impact if tokens are exposed. Follow the principle of least privilege for all related resources.

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