Summary
An issue was discovered by Elastic whereby Watcher search input logged the search query results on DEBUG log level. This could lead to raw contents of documents stored in Elasticsearch to be printed in logs. Elastic has released 8.11.2 and 7.17.16 that resolves this issue by removing this excessive logging. This issue only affects users that use Watcher and have a Watch defined that uses the search input and additionally have set the search input’s logger to DEBUG or finer, for example using: org.elasticsearch.xpack.watcher.input.search, org.elasticsearch.xpack.watcher.input, org.elasticsearch.xpack.watcher, or wider, since the loggers are hierarchical.
Impact
CVE-2023-49921 has a CVSS score of 5.2 (Medium). The vector is reachable from an adjacent network, low privileges required, and user interaction required. 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 (7.17.16, 8.11.2); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.
Affected versions
Security releases
Kodem intelligence
Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.
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. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.
Remediation advice
org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch to 7.17.16 or later; org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch to 8.11.2 or later
Kodem Kai can prioritize this vulnerability in your dependency tree and generate a fix recommendation.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2023-49921? CVE-2023-49921 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch (maven), affecting versions < 7.17.16. It is fixed in 7.17.16, 8.11.2.
- How severe is CVE-2023-49921? CVE-2023-49921 has a CVSS score of 5.2 (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.
- Which versions of org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch are affected by CVE-2023-49921? org.elasticsearch:elasticsearch (maven) versions < 7.17.16 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2023-49921? Yes. CVE-2023-49921 is fixed in 7.17.16, 8.11.2. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2023-49921 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2023-49921 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
- What actually determines whether CVE-2023-49921 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.
- How do I fix CVE-2023-49921?
- Upgrade
org.elasticsearch:elasticsearchto 7.17.16 or later - Upgrade
org.elasticsearch:elasticsearchto 8.11.2 or later
- Upgrade