CVE-2022-23628

Incorrect Calculation in github.com/open-policy-agent/opa

hello {
	["foo", _] = split(input.resource, "/")
}

hello {
	[_, "foo"] = split(input.resource, "/")
}

{
    "resource": "foo/bar"
}

{
    "hello": true
}

{}

Under certain conditions, pretty-printing an AST that contains synthetic nodes could change the logic of some statements by reordering array literals. Example of policies impacted are those that parse and compare web paths, see the example below.

All of these three conditions have to be met to create an adverse effect:

1. An AST of Rego had to be created programmatically such that it ends up containing terms without a location (such as wildcard variables).
2. The AST had to be pretty-printed using the github.com/open-policy-agent/opa/format package.
3. The result of the pretty-printing had to be parsed and evaluated again via an OPA instance using the bundles, or the Golang packages.

If any of these three conditions are not met, you are not affected.

Notably, all three would be true if using optimized bundles, i.e. bundles created with opa build -O=1 or higher.
In that case, the optimizer would fulfil condition (1.), the result of that would be pretty-printed when writing the bundle to disk, fulfilling (2.). When the bundle was then used, we'd satisfy (3.).

CVE-2022-23628 has a CVSS score of 6.3 (Medium). The vector is network-reachable, low privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (0.37.2); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

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Fixed in version 0.37.2.

1. What is CVE-2022-23628? CVE-2022-23628 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in github.com/open-policy-agent/opa (go), affecting versions >= 0.33.1, < 0.37.2. It is fixed in 0.37.2.
2. How severe is CVE-2022-23628? CVE-2022-23628 has a CVSS score of 6.3 (Medium). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
3. Which versions of github.com/open-policy-agent/opa are affected by CVE-2022-23628? github.com/open-policy-agent/opa (go) versions >= 0.33.1, < 0.37.2 is affected.
4. Is there a fix for CVE-2022-23628? Yes. CVE-2022-23628 is fixed in 0.37.2. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is CVE-2022-23628 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2022-23628 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
6. What actually determines whether CVE-2022-23628 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
7. How do I fix CVE-2022-23628? Upgrade github.com/open-policy-agent/opa to 0.37.2 or later.

Other vulnerabilities in github.com/open-policy-agent/opa