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CRITICAL

CVE-2023-40029

CVSS v3

9.6

CRITICAL

EPSS Score

1.2 %

exploit probability, as of 2026-10-19

CISA KEV

No

known exploited

Exploitation

—

SSVC status

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Affected and fixed versions

Packages from OSV.dev and products from the vendors' CSAF advisories.

version not verifiedVersions not verified: read as OSV.dev and the vendors publish them, not checked against each vendor's release list.

Packages

  • argo-cdBitnamifrom 2.2.0 · fixed in 2.6.15
  • github.com/argoproj/argo-cdGoall versions · no fixed version listed
  • github.com/argoproj/argo-cd/v2Gofrom 2.2.0 · fixed in 2.6.15

Vendor advisories

  • CVE-2023-40029 Red Hat Product Security8 products fixed

    ArgoCD: secrets can be leak through kubectl.kubernetes.io/last-applied-configuration

  • RHSA-2023:5030 Red Hat Product Security4 products fixed

    Red Hat Security Advisory: Red Hat OpenShift GitOps security update

  • RHSA-2023:5029 Red Hat Product Security4 products fixed

    Red Hat Security Advisory: Red Hat OpenShift GitOps security update

Full record on NVD

Description

Argo CD is a declarative continuous deployment for Kubernetes. Argo CD Cluster secrets might be managed declaratively using Argo CD / kubectl apply. As a result, the full secret body is stored in`kubectl.kubernetes.io/last-applied-configuration` annotation. pull request #7139 introduced the ability to manage cluster labels and annotations. Since clusters are stored as secrets it also exposes the `kubectl.kubernetes.io/last-applied-configuration` annotation which includes full secret body. In order to view the cluster annotations via the Argo CD API, the user must have `clusters, get` RBAC access. **Note:** In many cases, cluster secrets do not contain any actually-secret information. But sometimes, as in bearer-token auth, the contents might be very sensitive. The bug has been patched in versions 2.8.3, 2.7.14, and 2.6.15. Users are advised to upgrade. Users unable to upgrade should update/deploy cluster secret with `server-side-apply` flag which does not use or rely on `kubectl.kubernetes.io/last-applied-configuration` annotation. Note: annotation for existing secrets will require manual removal.

Technical details

Published
2023-09-07

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2023-40029?

Argo CD is a declarative continuous deployment for Kubernetes. Argo CD Cluster secrets might be managed declaratively using Argo CD / kubectl apply. As a result, the full secret body is stored in`kubectl.kubernetes.io/last-applied-configuration` annotation. pull request #7139 introduced the ability to manage cluster labels and annotations. Since clusters are stored as secrets it also exposes the `kubectl.kubernetes.io/last-applied-configuration` annotation which includes full secret body. In order to view the cluster annotations via the Argo CD API, the user must have `clusters, get` RBAC access. **Note:** In many cases, cluster secrets do not contain any actually-secret information. But sometimes, as in bearer-token auth, the contents might be very sensitive. The bug has been patched in versions 2.8.3, 2.7.14, and 2.6.15. Users are advised to upgrade. Users unable to upgrade should update/deploy cluster secret with `server-side-apply` flag which does not use or rely on `kubectl.kubernetes.io/last-applied-configuration` annotation. Note: annotation for existing secrets will require manual removal.

Is CVE-2023-40029 actively exploited?

Active exploitation of CVE-2023-40029 has not been confirmed. Its EPSS score was 1.2% on 2026-10-19, the estimated probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What is the CVSS score for CVE-2023-40029?

CVE-2023-40029 has a CVSS v3 base score of 9.6 (CRITICAL severity).

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