How severe is CVE-2022-23511?

CVE-2022-23511 has a CVSS score of 7.1/10, rated HIGH. Immediate patching is strongly recommended.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2022-23511?

CVE-2022-23511 affects the following packages: github.com/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent (Go). Ecosystems affected: Go.

How do I fix CVE-2022-23511?

Update github.com/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent to 1.247355.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2022-23511 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect CVE-2022-23511 in my Go dependencies?

Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.

How do I mitigate CVE-2022-23511 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.

How does O3 Security protect against CVE-2022-23511?

O3 pinpoints whether CVE-2022-23511 is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.

Is CVE-2022-23511 actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for CVE-2022-23511 yet. This does not mean the vulnerability cannot be exploited — absence of public exploits does not imply safety. Apply the recommended fix and use O3 Security to monitor your exposure.

What is the EPSS score for CVE-2022-23511?

CVE-2022-23511 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 0.5%, placing it in the 38th percentile of all CVEs. EPSS is maintained by FIRST.org and estimates the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. This score indicates relatively lower exploitation probability, though the CVSS severity should still guide your patching priority.

When was CVE-2022-23511 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2022-23511 was published on December 12, 2022 and was last updated on April 10, 2026. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

CVE-2022-23511: amazon-cloudwatch-agent Privilege Escalation (H…

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

0.5%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Lower Risk38th percentile+0.23%

EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.

Blast Radius

1 pkg affected

🐹github.com/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent

Real-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Go packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.

Description

A privilege escalation issue exists within the Amazon CloudWatch Agent for Windows, software for collecting metrics and logs from Amazon EC2 instances and on-premises servers, in versions up to and including v1.247354. When users trigger a repair of the Agent, a pop-up window opens with SYSTEM permissions. Users with administrative access to affected hosts may use this to create a new command prompt as NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM. To trigger this issue, the third party must be able to access the affected host and elevate their privileges such that they're able to trigger the agent repair process. They must also be able to install the tools required to trigger the issue. This issue does not affect the CloudWatch Agent for macOS or Linux. Agent users should upgrade to version 1.247355 of the CloudWatch Agent to address this issue. There is no recommended work around. Affected users must update the installed version of the CloudWatch Agent to address this issue.

Affected Packages

1 total 1 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
🐹Go	`github.com/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent`	all versions	1.247355.0

Detection & mitigation playbook

Open-source dependency

Detect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update github.com/aws/amazon-cloudwatch-agent to 1.247355.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2022-23511 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How O3 protects you
O3 pinpoints whether CVE-2022-23511 is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.

Tailored to CVE-2022-23511. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.

Frequently Asked Questions

A privilege escalation issue exists within the Amazon CloudWatch Agent for Windows, software for collecting metrics and logs from Amazon EC2 instances and on-premises servers, in versions up to and including v1.247354. When users trigger a repair of the Agent, a pop-up window opens with SYSTEM permissions. Users with administrative access to affected hosts may use this to create a new command prompt as NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM. To trigger this issue, the third party must be able to access the affected host and elevate their privileges such that they're able to trigger the agent repair process. They

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

Is CVE-2022-23511 in your dependencies?

O3 detects CVE-2022-23511 across Go dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.

Scan my dependencies How O3 SCA works

CVE-2022-23511