CVE-2023-30853
HIGHGradle Build Action data written to GitHub Actions Cache may expose 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.
Blast Radius
gradle/gradle-build-actionReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects GitHub Actions packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Gradle Build Action allows users to execute a Gradle Build in their GitHub Actions workflow. A vulnerability impacts GitHub workflows using the Gradle Build Action prior to version 2.4.2 that have executed the Gradle Build Tool with the configuration cache enabled, potentially exposing secrets configured for the repository.
Secrets configured for GitHub Actions are normally passed to the Gradle Build Tool via environment variables. Due to the way that the Gradle Build Tool records these environment variables, they may be persisted into an entry in the GitHub Actions cache. This data stored in the GitHub Actions cache can be read by a GitHub Actions workflow running in an untrusted context, such as that running for a Pull Request submitted by a developer via a repository fork.
This vulnerability was discovered internally through code review, and we have not seen any evidence of it being exploited in the wild. However, in addition to upgrading the Gradle Build Action, affected users should delete any potentially vulnerable cache entries and may choose to rotate any potentially affected secrets.
Gradle Build Action v2.4.2 and newer no longer saves this sensitive data for later use, preventing ongoing leakage of secrets via the GitHub Actions Cache.
While upgrading to the latest version of the Gradle Build Action will prevent leakage of secrets going forward, additional actions may be required due to current or previous GitHub Actions Cache entries containing this information.
Current cache entries will remain vulnerable until they are forcibly deleted or they expire naturally after 7 days of not being used. Potentially vulnerable entries can be easily identified in the GitHub UI by searching for a cache entry with key matching configuration-cache-*. The maintainers recommend that users of the Gradle Build Action inspect their list of cache entries and manually delete any that match this pattern.
While maintainers have not seen any evidence of this vulnerability being exploited, they recommend cycling any repository secrets if you cannot be certain that these have not been compromised. Compromise could occur if a user runs a GitHub Actions workflow for a pull request attempting to exploit this data. Warning signs to look for in a pull request include:
- Making changes to GitHub Actions workflow files in a way that may attempt to read/extract data from the Gradle User Home or
<project-root>/.gradledirectories. - Making changes to Gradle build files or other executable files that may be invoked by a GitHub Actions workflow, in a way that may attempt to read/extract information from these locations.
Some workarounds to limit the impact of this vulnerability are available:
- If the Gradle project does not opt-in to using the configuration cache, then it is not vulnerable.
- If the Gradle project does opt-in to using the configuration-cache by default, then the
--no-configuration-cachecommand-line argument can be used to disable this feature in a GitHub Actions workflow.
In any case, we recommend that users carefully inspect any pull request before approving the execution of GitHub Actions workflows. It may be prudent to require approval for all PRs from external contributors.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 📦GitHub Actions | gradle/gradle-build-action | all versions | 2.4.2 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for gradle/gradle-build-action. 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 gradle/gradle-build-action to 2.4.2 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2023-30853 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-2023-30853 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-2023-30853. 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-2023-30853 in your dependencies?
O3 detects CVE-2023-30853 across GitHub Actions dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.