Description

Potential for logging sensitive data in Spring Cloud Stream. Spring Cloud Stream 5.0.0 - 5.0.2 Spring Cloud Stream 4.3.0 - 4.3.3 Spring Cloud Stream 4.2.0 - 4.2.6

Executive Summary

Technical Details

Mitigations

References

Additional Metadata

{
  "score": "3.1",
  "pubDate": "2026-08-27T20:17:56.520Z",
  "pubdate": "2026-08-27T20:17:56.520Z",
  "executiveSummary": "A sensitive data exposure vulnerability exists in Spring Cloud Stream versions 5.0.0-5.0.2, 4.3.0-4.3.3, and 4.2.0-4.2.6.\nThe vulnerability involves the improper handling of application data, resulting in the logging of sensitive information.\nThis flaw can lead to unauthorized disclosure of confidential data, such as credentials, personal identifiable information (PII), or business-sensitive payloads, when these are processed by the message binder.\nThe impact depends on the sensitivity of the data traversing the message pipeline and the accessibility of the logging infrastructure.\nThe risk is significant for environments where message logs are aggregated in centralized systems (e.g., ELK stack, Splunk, or cloud logging providers) without strict access controls.\nAttackers with access to application logs—whether via local file system access, log management platforms, or insecure log monitoring endpoints—can perform unauthorized data exfiltration.\nNo specific exploit code is required; the exposure occurs as a byproduct of standard application operation when specific, sensitive payloads are logged by the framework.",
  "technicalDetails": "The vulnerability resides within the message processing and logging abstraction layer of Spring Cloud Stream. The framework's internal logging mechanisms, intended for debugging and observability, fail to adequately sanitize or mask sensitive fields when message headers or body content are logged during the binding process.\nRoot Cause: The root cause stems from the lack of conditional logging logic or data masking routines within the message interception components. When the framework handles message transitions or errors, it may perform a 'toString()' or similar serialization operation on the entire message object. If the message payload contains sensitive key-value pairs or headers, these are captured in plaintext within the application logs.\nAttack Flow: The exploitation is primarily passive. 1. An application using an affected version of Spring Cloud Stream processes a message containing sensitive data. 2. An event triggers the framework to log the message (e.g., binder misconfiguration, connection retry, or an unhandled exception). 3. The sensitive data is written to the configured logging destination (e.g., standard output, log files, or remote log aggregators). 4. A malicious actor with read access to the logging infrastructure retrieves the plaintext sensitive information.\nComponent and Versioning: The vulnerable components are located within the framework's internal message tracking and monitoring modules. Affected versions include Spring Cloud Stream 5.0.0 through 5.0.2, 4.3.0 through 4.3.3, and 4.2.0 through 4.2.6.\nAuthentication/Privileges: This vulnerability does not require authentication to the application itself, as the exposure occurs in the logs. However, an attacker must have sufficient privileges to access the log files or the centralized logging environment where these logs are indexed.\nNetwork Exposure: The vulnerability is independent of direct network exposure to the service but is dependent on the security posture of the logging pipeline infrastructure.\nPayload Behavior: The payload does not actively execute code; rather, it facilitates a data leak. Once logged, the information becomes persistent and available to any entity with access to the log persistence layer, effectively bypassing the security controls (such as encryption-at-rest or RBAC) that would typically protect the application database or internal memory."
}