CVE-2023-50726 is a medium-severity (CVSS 6.4) Improper Privilege Management 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.
Users with `create` but not `override` privileges can perform local sync in argo-cd
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- 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-2023-50726.
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-2023-50726 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 377,636 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/v2🐹github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2🐹github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2Real-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
Impact
"Local sync" is an Argo CD feature that allows developers to temporarily override an Application's manifests with locally-defined manifests. Use of the feature should generally be limited to highly-trusted users, since it allows the user to bypass any merge protections in git.
An improper validation bug allows users who have create privileges but not override privileges to sync local manifests on app creation. All other restrictions, including AppProject restrictions are still enforced. The only restriction which is not enforced is that the manifests come from some approved git/Helm/OCI source.
The bug was introduced in 1.2.0-rc1 when the local manifest sync feature was added.
Patches
The bug has been patched in the following versions:
- 2.10.3
- 2.9.8
- 2.8.12
Workarounds
To immediately mitigate the risk of branch protection bypass, remove applications, create RBAC access. The only way to eliminate the issue without removing RBAC access is to upgrade to a patched version.
Branch protection rules and review requirements are a great way to enforce security constraints in a GitOps environment, but they should be just one layer in a multi-layered approach. Make sure your AppProject and RBAC restrictions are as thorough as possible to prevent a review bypass vulnerability from permitting excessive damage.
References
For more information
- Open an issue in the Argo CD issue tracker or discussions
- Join us on Slack in channel #argo-cd
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/argoproj/argo-cd | ≥ 1.2.0-rc1 | No fix |
| 🐹Go | github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 | ≥ 2.9.0&&< 2.9.8 | 2.9.8go get github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2@v2.9.8 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 | ≥ 2.10.0&&< 2.10.3 | 2.10.3go get github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2@v2.10.3 |
| 🐹Go | github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 | ≥ 2.0.0-rc3&&< 2.8.12 | 2.8.12go get github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2@v2.8.12 |
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
No patched version of github.com/argoproj/argo-cd has shipped for CVE-2023-50726 yet. Where your build allows, override or pin the dependency away from the vulnerable range, and apply any maintainer-recommended mitigation.
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-2023-50726 can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to CVE-2023-50726. 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 1.10 | openshift-gitops-1/argocd-rhel8:v1.10.4-1 | RHSA-2024:1700 |
| Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.11 | openshift-gitops-1/argocd-rhel8:v1.11.3-2 | RHSA-2024:1697 |
| Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.12 | openshift-gitops-argocd-cli-0:1.12.1-5.el8 | RHSA-2024:1752 |
| Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.12 | openshift-gitops-1/argocd-rhel8:v1.12.1-1 | RHSA-2024:1753 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2023-50726 in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds CVE-2023-50726 across Go dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.