CVE-2022-24904

Workarounds

• If you are using >=v2.3.0 and do not have any Jsonnet/directory-type Applications, disable the Jsonnet/directory config management tool. The config key is called jsonnet.enable since the same build tool is used for both Jsonnet and plain-manifest ("directory") sources.

Mitigations

• Avoid mounting JSON-formatted secrets as files on the repo-server.
• Upgrade to >=2.3.0 to significantly reduce the risk of leaking out-of-bounds manifest files. Starting with 2.3.0, repository paths are randomized, and read permissions are restricted when manifests are not being actively being generated. This makes it very difficult to craft and use a malicious symlink.
• Upgrade to >=2.3.3, >=2.2.8, or >= 2.1.14 to significantly reduce the risk of leaking the contents of (but not the existence of) out-of-bounds manifest files. These versions prevent attackers from loading manifests which are not permitted in the Project which governs the Application.

Best practices which can mitigate risk

• Limit who has push access to manifest repositories.
• Limit who is allowed to configure new source repositories.
• Limit resource kinds and destinations allowed for Projects, and restrict user access to only the necessary Projects.

Credits

This vulnerability was originally discovered as part of the Trail of Bits audit, published March 12, 2021. The behavior was left unchanged at the time.

The vulnerability was independently re-discovered by @crenshaw-dev, who contributed the patch. A security audit by Ada Logics independently followed up on the Trail of Bits report around the same time.

References

• List of types of Applications, including directory-type
• RBAC documentation, showing how to limit repository permissions
• Project documentation, showing how to limit allowable resource kinds and destinations

For more information

Open an issue in the Argo CD issue tracker or discussions
Join us on Slack in channel #argo-cd

All unpatched versions of Argo CD starting with v0.7.0 are vulnerable to a symlink following bug allowing a malicious user with repository write access to leak sensitive files from Argo CD's repo-server.

A malicious Argo CD user with write access for a repository which is (or may be) used in a directory-type Application may commit a symlink which points to an out-of-bounds file.

• If the target file is a valid JSON or YAML manifest file, and the resource is allowed in the Application, the attacker can read the contents of that manifest file. (In versions <2.3.2, <2.2.8, and <2.1.14, the attacker may read the files contents even if the resource is not allowed in the Application).
• If the target file is valid JSON but is not a manifest file, the attacker may read the contents of the file.
• If the target file is not valid JSON or YAML, the attacker may read partial file contents (usually just the first character of the file).

Sensitive files which could be leaked include manifest files from other Applications' source repositories (potentially decrypted files, if you are using a decryption plugin) or any JSON-formatted secrets which have been mounted as files on the repo-server.

CVE-2022-24904 has a CVSS score of 4.3 (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 (2.1.15, 2.2.9, 2.3.4); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Kodem intelligence

A patch for this vulnerability has been released in the following Argo CD versions:

• v2.3.4
• v2.2.9
• v2.1.15

1. What is CVE-2022-24904? CVE-2022-24904 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 (go), affecting versions < 2.1.15. It is fixed in 2.1.15, 2.2.9, 2.3.4.
2. How severe is CVE-2022-24904? CVE-2022-24904 has a CVSS score of 4.3 (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/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 are affected by CVE-2022-24904? github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 (go) versions < 2.1.15 is affected.
4. Is there a fix for CVE-2022-24904? Yes. CVE-2022-24904 is fixed in 2.1.15, 2.2.9, 2.3.4. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is CVE-2022-24904 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2022-24904 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-2022-24904 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-2022-24904?
   • Upgrade github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 to 2.1.15 or later
   • Upgrade github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 to 2.2.9 or later
   • Upgrade github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 to 2.3.4 or later