CVE-2023-29193 is a high-severity (CVSS 8.7) CWE-209 vulnerability in github.com/authzed/spicedb. A fix is available for github.com/authzed/spicedb — see the affected versions and patch details below.
SpiceDB binding metrics port to untrusted networks and can leak command-line flags
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
- CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2023-29193.
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-2023-29193 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 377,166 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/authzed/spicedbReal-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
SpiceDB is an open source, Google Zanzibar-inspired, database system for creating and managing security-critical application permissions. The spicedb serve command contains a flag named --grpc-preshared-key which is used to protect the gRPC API from being accessed by unauthorized requests. The values of this flag are to be considered sensitive, secret data. The /debug/pprof/cmdline endpoint served by the metrics service (defaulting running on port 9090) reveals the command-line flags provided for debugging purposes. If a password is set via the --grpc-preshared-key then the key is revealed by this endpoint along with any other flags provided to the SpiceDB binary. This issue has been fixed in version 1.19.1.
Impact
All deployments abiding by the recommended best practices for production usage are NOT affected:
- Authzed's SpiceDB Serverless
- Authzed's SpiceDB Dedicated
- SpiceDB Operator
Users configuring SpiceDB via environment variables are NOT affected.
Users MAY be affected if they expose their metrics port to an untrusted network and are configuring --grpc-preshared-key via command-line flag.
Patches
TODO
Workarounds
To workaround this issue you can do one of the following:
- Configure the preshared key via an environment variable (e.g.
SPICEDB_GRPC_PRESHARED_KEY=yoursecret spicedb serve) - Reconfigure the
--metrics-addrflag to bind to a trusted network (e.g.--metrics-addr=localhost:9090) - Disable the metrics service via the flag (e.g.
--metrics-enabled=false) - Adopt one of the recommended deployment models: Authzed's managed services or the SpiceDB Operator
References
- GitHub Security Advisory issued for SpiceDB
- Go issue #22085 for documenting the risks of exposing pprof to the internet
- Go issue #42834 discusses preventing pprof registration to the default serve mux
- semgrep rule go.lang.security.audit.net.pprof.pprof-debug-exposure checks for a variation of this issue
Credit
We'd like to thank Amit Laish, a security researcher at GE Vernova for responsibly disclosing this vulnerability.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/authzed/spicedb | all versions | 1.19.1go get github.com/authzed/spicedb@v1.19.1 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/authzed/spicedb, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/authzed/spicedb to 1.19.1 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2023-29193 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-2023-29193 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2023-29193. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2023-29193 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2023-29193 across Go dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.