CVE-2024-31990

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Credits

This vulnerability was found & reported by @crenshaw-dev (Michael Crenshaw)

The Argo team would like to thank these contributors for their responsible disclosure and constructive communications during the resolve of this issue

I can convince the UI to let me do things with an invalid Application.

1. Admin gives me p, michael, applications, *, demo/*, allow, where demo can just deploy to the demo namespace
2. Admin gives me AppProject dev which reconciles from ns dev-apps
3. Admin gives me p, michael, applications, sync, dev/*, allow, i.e. no updating via the UI allowed, gitops-only
4. I create an Application called pwn in dev-apps with project dev and sync the app with sources from git
5. I change the Application’s project to demo via kubectl or gitops (whichever mechanism my admins have given me, because it should be safe)
6. I use the UI to edit the resource which should only be mutable via gitops

The application does not correctly enforce access controls, allowing a principal to access resources or operations beyond their granted permissions. Typical impact: unauthorized data access or execution of privileged operations.

CVE-2024-31990 has a CVSS score of 4.8 (Medium). The vector is network-reachable, 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 (2.8.16, 2.9.12, 2.10.7); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Kodem intelligence

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

v2.10.7
v2.9.12
v2.8.16

1. What is CVE-2024-31990? CVE-2024-31990 is a medium-severity incorrect authorization vulnerability in github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 (go), affecting versions >= 2.4.0, < 2.8.16. It is fixed in 2.8.16, 2.9.12, 2.10.7. The application does not correctly enforce access controls, allowing a principal to access resources or operations beyond their granted permissions.
2. How severe is CVE-2024-31990? CVE-2024-31990 has a CVSS score of 4.8 (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-2024-31990? github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 (go) versions >= 2.4.0, < 2.8.16 is affected.
4. Is there a fix for CVE-2024-31990? Yes. CVE-2024-31990 is fixed in 2.8.16, 2.9.12, 2.10.7. Upgrade to this version or later.
5. Is CVE-2024-31990 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2024-31990 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-2024-31990 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-2024-31990?
   • Upgrade github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 to 2.8.16 or later
   • Upgrade github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 to 2.9.12 or later
   • Upgrade github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2 to 2.10.7 or later