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Ssh AgentApplication · Jenkins

CVE-2018-1999036

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.0 Published 2018-08-01
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 1.15 or later.
See remediation →
71/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
An exposure of sensitive information vulnerability exists in Jenkins SSH Agent Plugin 1.15 and earlier in SSHAgentStepExecution.java that exposes the SSH private key password to users with permission to read the build log.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

The Jenkins SSH Agent Plugin versions 1.15 and earlier expose SSH private key passwords directly in build logs through SSHAgentStepExecution.java. Any user with permission to read build logs can view these sensitive credentials.

MitigationUpgrade the SSH Agent Plugin to version 1.16 or later which addresses the credential exposure. Additionally, audit build logs for any prior exposure and rotate potentially compromised SSH private key passwords.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Ssh AgentApplication
Affected:<= 1.15

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check SSH Agent Plugin version
    Navigate to Manage Jenkins > Manage Plugins > Installed tab and search for 'SSH Agent', or run: java -jar jenkins-cli.jar list-plugins 2>/dev/null | grep -i ssh-agent
    Affected if The plugin version listed is 1.15 or earlier
  2. Identify jobs using SSH Agent build step
    Search job configurations for the 'sshagent' or 'SSH Agent' build step, or search workspace files for credentials configured with SSH private key passwords
    Affected if Jobs contain SSH Agent steps with private key credentials configured
  3. Review build logs for credential exposure
    Open recent build console output for jobs using SSH Agent and search for patterns like 'SSH Agent: ...' or examine log entries around SSH key loading for any plaintext passwords
    Affected if Build logs contain visible private key passwords in plain text near SSH Agent output

You are affected if the SSH Agent Plugin version is 1.15 or earlier AND your builds use SSH credentials with private key passwords, as these passwords may be visible in build logs to anyone with log access.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 1.15
Interim mitigation

Upgrade the SSH Agent Plugin to version 1.16 or later which addresses the credential exposure. Additionally, audit build logs for any prior exposure and rotate potentially compromised SSH private key passwords.

Fix this in Ssh Agent Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
5.0 hours of engineering $860
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,376.

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2018-1999036 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data