How severe is CVE-2025-55196?

No CVSS score has been assigned to CVE-2025-55196 yet. Review the advisory details and affected package list to assess your exposure.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2025-55196?

CVE-2025-55196 affects the following packages: github.com/external-secrets/external-secrets (Go). Ecosystems affected: Go.

How do I fix CVE-2025-55196?

Update github.com/external-secrets/external-secrets to 0.19.2 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2025-55196 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect CVE-2025-55196 in my Go dependencies?

Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/external-secrets/external-secrets. 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-2025-55196 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-2025-55196?

O3 pinpoints whether CVE-2025-55196 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-2025-55196 actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for CVE-2025-55196 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-2025-55196?

CVE-2025-55196 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 0.3%, placing it in the 24th 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.

What type of vulnerability is CVE-2025-55196?

CVE-2025-55196 is classified as CWE-284 (CWE-284). This weakness type describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation.

When was CVE-2025-55196 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2025-55196 was published on August 13, 2025 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-2025-55196: external-secrets

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

0.3%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Lower Risk24th percentile+0.22%

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/external-secrets/external-secrets

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

External Secrets Operator is a Kubernetes operator that integrates external secret management systems. From version 0.15.0 to before 0.19.2, a vulnerability was discovered where the List() calls for Kubernetes Secret and SecretStore resources performed by the PushSecret controller did not apply a namespace selector. This flaw allowed an attacker to use label selectors to list and read secrets/secret-stores across the cluster, bypassing intended namespace restrictions. An attacker with the ability to create or update PushSecret resources and control SecretStore configurations could exploit this vulnerability to exfiltrate sensitive data from arbitrary namespaces. This could lead to full disclosure of Kubernetes secrets, including credentials, tokens, and other sensitive information stored in the cluster. This vulnerability has been patched in version 0.19.2. A workaround for this issue includes auditing and restricting RBAC permissions so that only trusted service accounts can create or update PushSecret and SecretStore resources.

Affected Packages

1 total 1 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
🐹Go	`github.com/external-secrets/external-secrets`	≥ 0.15.0&&< 0.19.2	0.19.2

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/external-secrets/external-secrets. 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/external-secrets/external-secrets to 0.19.2 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2025-55196 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-2025-55196 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-2025-55196. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.

Frequently Asked Questions

External Secrets Operator is a Kubernetes operator that integrates external secret management systems. From version 0.15.0 to before 0.19.2, a vulnerability was discovered where the List() calls for Kubernetes Secret and SecretStore resources performed by the PushSecret controller did not apply a namespace selector. This flaw allowed an attacker to use label selectors to list and read secrets/secret-stores across the cluster, bypassing intended namespace restrictions. An attacker with the ability to create or update PushSecret resources and control SecretStore configurations could exploit this

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

Is CVE-2025-55196 in your dependencies?

O3 detects CVE-2025-55196 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-2025-55196