GHSA-W72W-9QMJ-C9QM

Vulnerability from github – Published: 2026-09-18 17:17 – Updated: 2026-09-18 17:17
VLAI
Summary
AnyCable: Telemetry Subsystem Contains Hardcoded Authentication Token and Transmits CLI Arguments Including Secrets
Details

Summary

The telemetry subsystem embeds a hardcoded auth token ("secret") in the public source and transmits raw CLI arguments—including --secret, --jwt_secret, and --http_rpc_secret values—to a third-party telemetry endpoint.

Details

In telemetry/config.go line 12, var authToken = "secret" is committed in the public repository and used to authenticate to https://telemetry.anycable.io. In telemetry/telemetry.go, clusterFingerprint() (line 320) calls both anycableFileConfig(c.ConfigFilePath) (line 333), which reads the full TOML config file contents, and anycableCLIArgs() (line 402), which reads os.Args[1:] verbatim—including any --secret=..., --jwt_secret=..., --http_rpc_secret=... arguments. Both raw values are passed to generateDigest() (line 373), meaning the actual secret strings flow through the code path and are included in telemetry data sent to the third-party server. Since the hardcoded authToken = "secret" is public, any attacker who can perform DNS hijacking or is positioned on the network path can intercept and read the telemetry payload containing operator credentials.

PoC

  1. Read telemetry/config.go in the public repo to find authToken = "secret".
  2. Set up a DNS spoof for telemetry.anycable.io pointing to an attacker-controlled server.
  3. Start anycable-go with --secret=my-production-secret.
  4. The server sends a POST to the attacker's endpoint with the telemetry JSON payload. The clusterFingerprint field contains data derived from raw os.Args including --secret=my-production-secret.

Impact

In MITM/DNS-hijack scenarios, production secrets (JWT secrets, broadcast keys, RPC auth) are exposed to third parties. The hardcoded authToken = "secret" provides no protection since it is known to anyone reading the open-source code.

Fix

  1. Remove the hardcoded authToken from source; generate or require operator configuration at build time or deployment time. 2. Remove anycableCLIArgs() from the fingerprint computation, or sanitize it to exclude values of secret-bearing flags before hashing. 3. Add a documented opt-out mechanism for telemetry.
Severity
5.9 (Medium)
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
Show details on source website
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{
  "affected": [
    {
      "database_specific": {
        "last_known_affected_version_range": "\u003c= 1.6.14"
      },
      "package": {
        "ecosystem": "Go",
        "name": "github.com/anycable/anycable"
      },
      "ranges": [
        {
          "events": [
            {
              "introduced": "0"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "1.6.15"
            }
          ],
          "type": "ECOSYSTEM"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "aliases": [
    "CVE-2026-63406"
  ],
  "database_specific": {
    "cwe_ids": [
      "CWE-312",
      "CWE-798"
    ],
    "github_reviewed": true,
    "github_reviewed_at": "2026-09-18T17:17:29Z",
    "nvd_published_at": null,
    "severity": "MODERATE"
  },
  "details": "### Summary\nThe telemetry subsystem embeds a hardcoded auth token (`\"secret\"`) in the public source and transmits raw CLI arguments\u2014including `--secret`, `--jwt_secret`, and `--http_rpc_secret` values\u2014to a third-party telemetry endpoint.\n\n### Details\nIn `telemetry/config.go` line 12, `var authToken = \"secret\"` is committed in the public repository and used to authenticate to `https://telemetry.anycable.io`. In `telemetry/telemetry.go`, `clusterFingerprint()` (line 320) calls both `anycableFileConfig(c.ConfigFilePath)` (line 333), which reads the full TOML config file contents, and `anycableCLIArgs()` (line 402), which reads `os.Args[1:]` verbatim\u2014including any `--secret=...`, `--jwt_secret=...`, `--http_rpc_secret=...` arguments. Both raw values are passed to `generateDigest()` (line 373), meaning the actual secret strings flow through the code path and are included in telemetry data sent to the third-party server. Since the hardcoded `authToken = \"secret\"` is public, any attacker who can perform DNS hijacking or is positioned on the network path can intercept and read the telemetry payload containing operator credentials.\n\n### PoC\n1. Read `telemetry/config.go` in the public repo to find `authToken = \"secret\"`.\n2. Set up a DNS spoof for `telemetry.anycable.io` pointing to an attacker-controlled server.\n3. Start anycable-go with `--secret=my-production-secret`.\n4. The server sends a POST to the attacker\u0027s endpoint with the telemetry JSON payload. The `clusterFingerprint` field contains data derived from raw `os.Args` including `--secret=my-production-secret`.\n\n### Impact\nIn MITM/DNS-hijack scenarios, production secrets (JWT secrets, broadcast keys, RPC auth) are exposed to third parties. The hardcoded `authToken = \"secret\"` provides no protection since it is known to anyone reading the open-source code.\n\n### Fix\n1. Remove the hardcoded `authToken` from source; generate or require operator configuration at build time or deployment time. 2. Remove `anycableCLIArgs()` from the fingerprint computation, or sanitize it to exclude values of secret-bearing flags before hashing. 3. Add a documented opt-out mechanism for telemetry.",
  "id": "GHSA-w72w-9qmj-c9qm",
  "modified": "2026-09-18T17:17:29Z",
  "published": "2026-09-18T17:17:29Z",
  "references": [
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://github.com/anycable/anycable/security/advisories/GHSA-w72w-9qmj-c9qm"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://github.com/anycable/anycable/commit/201c67e99e463ed63bd6b345562f4c458385fcee"
    },
    {
      "type": "PACKAGE",
      "url": "https://github.com/anycable/anycable"
    },
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://github.com/anycable/anycable/releases/tag/v1.6.15"
    }
  ],
  "schema_version": "1.4.0",
  "severity": [
    {
      "score": "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N",
      "type": "CVSS_V3"
    }
  ],
  "summary": "AnyCable: Telemetry Subsystem Contains Hardcoded Authentication Token and Transmits CLI Arguments Including Secrets"
}



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