# CVE-2023-28531: Security feature bypass in n/a

> OpenSSH ssh-add fails to apply per-hop destination constraints to smartcard keys, allowing bypass of intended security restrictions.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 17 Mar 2023
- **Updated:** 14 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** ALPINE-CVE-2023-28531, AZL-25662, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-28531, GHSA-j839-ff8c-f62x, JLSEC-2026-67, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-28531

## What is CVE-2023-28531?

CVE-2023-28531 is a critical vulnerability in OpenSSH, published on 17 Mar 2023. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

ssh-add in OpenSSH before 9.3 adds smartcard keys to ssh-agent without the intended per-hop destination constraints. The earliest affected version is 8.9.

Weakness: CWE-284 (Improper Access Control)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-28531?

It affects 4 products.


Products: Netapp Brocade Fabric Operating System, Netapp Hci Bootstrap Os, Netapp Solidfire Element Os, OpenSSH.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-28531?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2023-28531 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-28531 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-28531 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-28531 is a critical vulnerability in OpenSSH, published on 17 Mar 2023. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-28531 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: OpenSSH. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

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-2023-28531/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-28531/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-28531
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-28531
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-28531

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-28531/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.