Kubernetes adoption has exploded across every vertical, yet the attack surface keeps expanding faster than the default safeguards. Redbot Security’s manual deep dive assessments routinely uncover privilege escalations, data exposing misconfigurations, and container escapes even in clusters that have passed basic compliance scans. A rigorous penetration test therefore needs to probe every layer of the stack, from the control plane to the supply chain, and validate the effectiveness of runtime defenses.
The business case for deeper testing
Kubernetes adoption keeps soaring, but 2024‑ 2025 has been a wake‑up call: high‑severity flaws in Ingress‑NGINX, supply‑chain compromises in GitHub Actions, and a Windows‑node RCE all landed within a 15‑month window. Even clusters that “pass” basic compliance scanners can still be popped in minutes, a reality that leading “penetration testing companies” like Redbot Security uncover every week.
| Date | Incident | What went wrong | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 28 2024 | Kinsing cryptojacking wave | Public API servers + vulnerable images → mass Dero mining | PurpleSec |
| Aug 20 2024 | TLS bootstrap abuse in Azure AKS | One pod shell = bootstrap token = read all secrets | The Hacker News |
| Mar 24 2025 | Ingress‑NGINX CVE‑2025‑1974 | File‑upload flaw → access to every namespace secret | Kubernetes |
| Jan 24 2025 | CVE‑2024‑9042 Windows‑node RCE | Crafted GET to Log Query = SYSTEM on every Windows node | Akamai |
| Mar 19 2025 | GitHub Action CVE‑2025‑30066 | Compromised CI pipeline injects code into supply chain | CISA |
These incidents prove that an effective checklist must be holistic, probing everything from etcd to the CI/CD pipeline.
what is etcd?
In Kubernetes, etcd is a distributed, consistent, and reliable key-value store that serves as the primary data store for the entire cluster. It stores and manages all the state data, configuration data, and metadata about Kubernetes objects like pods, services, and deployments. Essentially, it's the brain of the Kubernetes control plane, holding the "truth" about the cluster's state.
Ten essential test categories
| # | Focus Area | Pen‑Testing Objective | Typical Finding |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | API server & etcd | Replay snapshots, spoof client certs, stress admission plugins | Plain‑text secrets; unauthenticated health endpoints |
| 2 | RBAC & service accounts | Enumerate bindings, craft CSR attacks | Default service accounts with cluster‑admin |
| 3 | Admission & pod security | Race mutating webhooks, bypass PSA | Privileged pods running as root |
| 4 | Secrets handling | Exfiltrate Base64 secrets, test DEK rotation | Stagnant keys; long‑lived tokens |
| 5 | Container runtime escape | Mount host paths, exploit CVE‑2022‑0185 variants | Write access to `/etc/kubernetes/manifests` |
| 6 | Network segmentation | Pivot namespaces, downgrade mTLS | No default‑deny NetworkPolicies |
| 7 | Supply‑chain controls | Push unsigned images, break SBOM verify | Admission not enforcing signatures |
| 8 | Node OS posture | Map kernels to escape CVEs | Out‑of‑date “pet” worker nodes |
| 9 | Detection & logging | Generate noisy events, measure SIEM latency | Audit logs disabled for create/exec verbs |
| 10 | Multi‑tenancy boundaries | Quota exhaustion, bypass CNI isolation | Tenant‑crossing DoS (“noisy neighbor”) |
This combination shortens mean‑time‑to‑detect for low‑hanging issues while surfacing business‑critical chains that automation overlooks.
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Kubernetes security demands more than configuration linting. Book a discovery call with Redbot Security to scope a Kubernetes penetration test that turns abstract misconfigurations into measurable risk reduction and provable ROI for your executive team.
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