3.1.1 - Ensure that the kubeconfig file permissions are set to 644 or more restrictive (Automated)

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Profile applicability: Level 1

If kubelet is running, and if it is configured by a kubeconfig file, ensure that the proxy kubeconfig file has permissions of 644 or more restrictive.

The kubelet kubeconfig file controls various parameters of the kubelet service in the worker node. You should restrict its file permissions to maintain the integrity of the file. The file should be writable by only the administrators on the system.

It is possible to run kubelet with the kubeconfig parameters configured as a Kubernetes ConfigMap instead of a file. In this case, there is no proxy kubeconfig file.

Note

See the AWS EKS documentation for the default value.

Impact

Ensuring that the kubeconfig file permissions are set to 644 or more restrictive significantly strengthens the security posture of the Kubernetes environment by preventing unauthorized modifications. This restricts write access to the kubeconfig file, ensuring only administrators can alter crucial kubelet configurations, thereby reducing the risk of malicious alterations that could compromise the cluster's integrity.

However, this configuration may slightly impact usability, as it limits the ability for non-administrative users to make quick adjustments to the kubelet settings. Administrators will need to balance security needs with operational flexibility, potentially requiring adjustments to workflows for managing kubelet configurations.

Audit

Method 1

SSH to the worker nodes.

Enter the following command to check if the Kubelet Service is running:
```
sudo systemctl status kubelet
```
The output should return Active: active (running) since...
Run the following command on each node to find the appropriate kubeconfig file:
```
ps -ef | grep kubelet
```
The output should return something similar to --kubeconfig /var/lib/kubelet/kubeconfig, which is the location of the kubeconfig file.
Run this command to obtain the kubeconfig file permissions:
```
stat -c %a /var/lib/kubelet/kubeconfig
```
Verify that if a file is specified and it exists, the permissions are 644 or more restrictive.

Method 2

Create and Run a Privileged Pod

Run a pod that is privileged enough to access the host's file system. To do this, deploy a pod that uses the hostPath volume to mount the node's file system into the pod.

An example of a simple pod definition that mounts the root of the host to /host within the pod:
```
apiVersion: v1
kind: Pod
metadata:
  name: file-check
spec:
  volumes:
  - name: host-root
    hostPath:
      path: /
      type: Directory
  containers:
  - name: nsenter
    image: busybox
    command: ["sleep", "3600"]
    volumeMounts:
    - name: host-root
      mountPath: /host
    securityContext:
      privileged: true
```
Save this to a file (e.g., file-check-pod.yaml) and create the pod:
```
kubectl apply -f file-check-pod.yaml
```
Once the pod is running, exec into it to check file permissions on the node:
```
kubectl exec -it file-check -- sh
```
Now you are in a shell inside the pod, but you can access the node's file system through the /host directory and check the permission level of the file:
```
ls -l /host/var/lib/kubelet/kubeconfig
```
Verify that if a file is specified and it exists, the permissions are 644 or more restrictive.

Remediation

Run the below command (based on the file location on your system) on each worker node. For example:

chmod 644 <kubeconfig file>