CVE-2023-23947 is a critical-severity (CVSS 9.1) CWE-863 vulnerability in github.com/argoproj/argo-cd. A fix is available for github.com/argoproj/argo-cd — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Argo CD users with any cluster secret update access may update out-of-bounds cluster secrets
EPSS Exploitation Probability
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.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2023-23947 plotted by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). The shaded corner — EPSS 50%+ and CVSS 7.0+ — is where this CVE doesn't sit, though severity or exploitability alone can still warrant action.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 377,238 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
github.com/argoproj/argo-cd🐹github.com/argoproj/argo-cd🐹github.com/argoproj/argo-cd🐹github.com/argoproj/argo-cdReal-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
Argo CD is a declarative, GitOps continuous delivery tool for Kubernetes. All Argo CD versions starting with 2.3.0-rc1 and prior to 2.3.17, 2.4.23 2.5.11, and 2.6.2 are vulnerable to an improper authorization bug which allows users who have the ability to update at least one cluster secret to update any cluster secret. The attacker could use this access to escalate privileges (potentially controlling Kubernetes resources) or to break Argo CD functionality (by preventing connections to external clusters). A patch for this vulnerability has been released in Argo CD versions 2.6.2, 2.5.11, 2.4.23, and 2.3.17. Two workarounds are available. Either modify the RBAC configuration to completely revoke all clusters, update access, or use the destinations and clusterResourceWhitelist fields to apply similar restrictions as the namespaces and clusterResources fields.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/argoproj/argo-cd | ≥ 2.3.0&&< 2.3.17 | 2.3.17go get github.com/argoproj/argo-cd@v2.3.17 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/argoproj/argo-cd | ≥ 2.4.0&&< 2.4.23 | 2.4.23go get github.com/argoproj/argo-cd@v2.4.23 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/argoproj/argo-cd | ≥ 2.5.0&&< 2.5.11 | 2.5.11go get github.com/argoproj/argo-cd@v2.5.11 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/argoproj/argo-cd | ≥ 2.6.0&&< 2.6.2 | 2.6.2go get github.com/argoproj/argo-cd@v2.6.2 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/argoproj/argo-cd, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/argoproj/argo-cd to 2.3.17 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2023-23947 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 Security's impact-aware SCA analyses which vulnerable code paths your application actually calls, so a match like CVE-2023-23947 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2023-23947. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Fixing This On Your OS
If you run this on a Linux distribution, patch through your package manager against the distro's own security advisory below — it tracks the exact backported fix for your release, which can ship on a different timeline (and sometimes a different severity) than the upstream project.
| Product | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.5 | openshift-gitops-1/argocd-rhel8:v1.5.10-6 | RHSA-2023:0804 |
| Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.6 | openshift-gitops-1/argocd-rhel8:v1.6.5-5 | RHSA-2023:0802 |
| Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.7 | openshift-gitops-1/argocd-rhel8:v1.7.2-5 | RHSA-2023:0803 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2023-23947 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2023-23947 across Go dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.