# CVE-2023-22647: Rancher vulnerable to Privilege Escalation via manipulation of Secrets

> Standard users can manipulate Kubernetes secrets to gain unauthorized access to service account tokens, leading to privilege escalation.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.9 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 1 Jun 2023
- **Updated:** 9 Jan 2025
- **Also known as:** GHSA-p976-h52c-26p6

## What is CVE-2023-22647?

CVE-2023-22647 is a critical vulnerability in SUSE Rancher, published on 1 Jun 2023. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

An Improper Privilege Management vulnerability in SUSE Rancher allowed standard users to leverage their existing permissions to manipulate Kubernetes secrets in the local
 cluster, resulting in the secret being deleted, but their read-level 
permissions to the secret being preserved. When this operation was 
followed-up by other specially crafted commands, it could result in the 
user gaining access to tokens belonging to service accounts in the local cluster.

This issue affects Rancher: from >= 2.6.0 before < 2.6.13, from >= 2.7.0 before < 2.7.4.

Weakness: CWE-267 (Privilege Defined With Unsafe Actions)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-22647?

4 open source packages ship an affected version, including github.com/rancher/rancher. It affects 1 product.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `github.com/rancher/rancher` | Go | From 2.6.0 | 2.6.13 |
| `github.com/rancher/rancher` | Go | From 2.6.0 | 2.6.13 |
| `github.com/rancher/rancher` | Go | From 2.7.0 | 2.7.4 |
| `github.com/rancher/rancher` | Go | From 2.7.0 | 2.7.4 |

Products: Suse Rancher.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-22647?

Upgrade github.com/rancher/rancher to a fixed version for your release line: 2.6.13 or 2.7.4.

## Is CVE-2023-22647 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-22647 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in SUSE Rancher

- [CVE-2023-22651](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-22651/): Rancher Webhook is misconfigured during upgrade process (critical 9.9)
- [CVE-2022-43757](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-43757/): Rancher: Exposure of sensitive fields (critical 9.9)
- [CVE-2021-36782](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-36782/): Rancher: Plaintext storage and exposure of credentials in Rancher API and cluster.management.cattle.io object (critical 9.9)
- [CVE-2021-36783](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-36783/): Rancher: Failure to properly sanitize credentials in cluster template answers (critical 9.9)
- [CVE-2019-11202](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-11202/): Rancher Recreates Default User With Known Password Despite Deletion (critical 9.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-22647 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-22647 is a critical vulnerability in SUSE Rancher, published on 1 Jun 2023. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-22647 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- github.com/rancher/rancher (Go): affected from 2.6.0; fixed in 2.6.13
- github.com/rancher/rancher (Go): affected from 2.6.0; fixed in 2.6.13
- github.com/rancher/rancher (Go): affected from 2.7.0; fixed in 2.7.4
- github.com/rancher/rancher (Go): affected from 2.7.0; fixed in 2.7.4

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-22647/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-22647/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-22647
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-22647
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-22647

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-22647/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.