CVE-2024-1657: Ansible Automation Platform Information Disclosure

CVE-2024-1657 Overview

A flaw exists in the Ansible Automation Platform involving an insecure WebSocket connection used during installation of the Event-Driven Ansible (EDA) rulebook server. The connection transmits rulebook data without adequate transport protection. An attacker with access to any machine within the same CIDR block can read all rulebook data flowing over the WebSocket. Successful exploitation results in loss of confidentiality and integrity for the automation platform. The weakness is classified under CWE-319: Cleartext Transmission of Sensitive Information.

Critical Impact
Attackers on an adjacent network segment can intercept sensitive rulebook data, exposing automation logic, credentials, and control flow used by EDA-driven operations.

Affected Products

Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform
Event-Driven Ansible (EDA) rulebook server component
Installations using the affected WebSocket configuration

Discovery Timeline

2024-04-25 - CVE-2024-1657 published to NVD
2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-1657

Vulnerability Analysis

The defect resides in the EDA server component of Ansible Automation Platform. During installation, the platform configures a WebSocket channel used to distribute rulebook data between components. The channel is established without transport-layer security, meaning payloads move in cleartext across the network. Any host that shares the CIDR block with the EDA server can observe this traffic using standard packet capture tooling.

Rulebook content typically encodes automation logic, event conditions, and references to sensitive parameters. Exposure of this data undermines confidentiality of the automation pipeline. It also enables integrity attacks, because an adversary who understands the rulebook can craft events or actions that manipulate downstream automation.

The issue is documented in the Red Hat CVE Analysis CVE-2024-1657 and Red Hat Bug Report #2265085. The classification [CWE-319] captures the root category of cleartext transmission of sensitive information.

Root Cause

The EDA server installation defaulted to an unencrypted ws:// WebSocket rather than wss:// with TLS. No integrity verification or channel authentication compensated for the missing transport encryption. Machines sharing the network segment with the EDA server therefore had passive read access to rulebook traffic.

Attack Vector

The attacker requires network adjacency and low-privilege access to any host in the same CIDR block as the EDA server. From that vantage point, they capture WebSocket frames carrying rulebook payloads. No user interaction is required, and the attack succeeds over the network path used by the EDA installer and runtime.

No verified public proof-of-concept exploit is listed in the reference set. See the Red Hat Security Advisory RHSA-2024:1057 for vendor-supplied technical detail.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-1657

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected ws:// WebSocket connections to the EDA server on installation or runtime ports, rather than wss:// TLS-protected sessions.
Packet captures on the EDA network segment containing readable rulebook YAML or JSON payloads.
Hosts within the CIDR block running packet capture tools (tcpdump, tshark, wireshark) without an authorized purpose.

Detection Strategies

Inspect EDA server configuration and installer logs to confirm whether WebSocket endpoints are bound to plaintext protocols.
Perform network flow analysis between Automation Controller, EDA server, and worker nodes to identify unencrypted channels.
Correlate host telemetry with network telemetry to flag any process establishing raw WebSocket connections to EDA endpoints from unexpected sources.

Monitoring Recommendations

Alert on new listeners on the EDA server that do not present a valid TLS certificate.
Monitor ARP tables and switch port mirroring changes on segments hosting Ansible Automation Platform components.
Track privileged access to hosts sharing the EDA CIDR block and review sudo, setcap, and raw socket usage.

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-1657

Immediate Actions Required

Apply the fixes described in the Red Hat Security Advisory RHSA-2024:1057 to affected Ansible Automation Platform installations.
Reconfigure EDA server WebSocket endpoints to use TLS (wss://) with validated certificates.
Rotate any credentials, tokens, or secrets that may have been referenced by rulebooks transmitted over the affected channel.

Patch Information

Red Hat has published updated Ansible Automation Platform packages via RHSA-2024:1057. Administrators should update the EDA server component and follow the post-installation guidance in the advisory to enforce encrypted transport. Refer to Red Hat's CVE-2024-1657 analysis for affected version ranges and errata mapping.

Workarounds

Restrict network access to the EDA server CIDR block using host firewalls, segmentation, and Zero Trust policies until the patch is applied.
Place the EDA server on an isolated management VLAN and require jump-host access with strong authentication.
Terminate WebSocket traffic behind a reverse proxy that enforces TLS, if immediate reinstallation is not feasible.

bash

# Configuration example: enforce TLS on EDA WebSocket endpoints
# Review the Red Hat advisory for authoritative settings
# https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2024:1057

# 1. Verify current listener protocol
ss -tlnp | grep -E 'eda|websocket'

# 2. Restrict segment access while patching
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-rich-rule=\
  'rule family="ipv4" source address="10.0.0.0/24" invert="True" \
   port port="5000" protocol="tcp" reject'
sudo firewall-cmd --reload

# 3. After patching, confirm wss:// endpoint and valid certificate
openssl s_client -connect eda.example.internal:5000 -servername eda.example.internal