CVE-2023-25165: getHostByName Function Information Disclosure

Severity: medium (CVSS 4.3 v3.1)
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 0.8% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: yes
Published: 2023-02-08 · updated 2026-06-17
Weakness: CWE-200

Description

Helm is a tool that streamlines installing and managing Kubernetes applications.`getHostByName` is a Helm template function introduced in Helm v3. The function is able to accept a hostname and return an IP address for that hostname. To get the IP address the function performs a DNS lookup. The DNS lookup happens when used with `helm install|upgrade|template` or when the Helm SDK is used to render a chart. Information passed into the chart can be disclosed to the DNS servers used to lookup the IP address. For example, a malicious chart could inject `getHostByName` into a chart in order to disclose values to a malicious DNS server. The issue has been fixed in Helm 3.11.1. Prior to using a chart with Helm verify the `getHostByName` function is not being used in a template to disclose any information you do not want passed to DNS servers.

Affected products

helm: from 3.0.0 before 3.11.1 — fixed in 3.11.1

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: helm 3.11.1. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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