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Argo CdApplication · Argoproj

CVE-2021-23135

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-05-12
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 1.7.14 / 1.8.7 or later.
See remediation →
57/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
Exposure of System Data to an Unauthorized Control Sphere vulnerability in web UI of Argo CD allows attacker to cause leaked secret data into web UI error messages and logs. This issue affects Argo CD 1.8 versions prior to 1.8.7; 1.7 versions prior to 1.7.14.

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

Argo CD web UI exposes sensitive secret data through error messages and logs due to an information disclosure vulnerability in the web UI component. Attackers with access to the web UI can view leaked secret information in error messages, compromising sensitive credentials.

MitigationUpgrade Argo CD to version 1.8.7 or later (for 1.8.x) or 1.7.14 or later (for 1.7.x) to remediate the secret leakage in web UI error messages and logs.

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
Argo CdApplication
Affected:>= 1.7.0, < 1.7.14>= 1.8.0, < 1.8.7

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/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. Determine installed Argo CD version
    Run 'argocd version' on the argocd-server pod or check the image tag in the deployment YAML (e.g., 'argoproj/argocd:v1.8.6')
    Affected if The version is >= 1.7.0 and < 1.7.14, OR >= 1.8.0 and < 1.8.7
  2. Verify web UI is accessible
    Confirm the argocd-server service is exposed (check service type, ingress, or route configuration). Access the web UI at the configured URL.
    Affected if The web UI is externally accessible or reachable by untrusted users
  3. Inspect server logs for leaked secrets
    Retrieve argocd-server pod logs (e.g., 'kubectl logs -n argocd deployment/argocd-server') and search for patterns like 'password', 'token', 'secret', or 'credential' appearing in error messages
    Affected if Logs contain actual secret values (not just field names) in error message context

You are affected if your Argo CD version is between 1.7.0-1.7.13 or 1.8.0-1.8.6 AND the web UI is accessible to users who should not see secret data.

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 1.7.14 / 1.8.7 or later
Fixed in 1.7.141.8.7
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Argo CD to version 1.8.7 or later (for 1.8.x) or 1.7.14 or later (for 1.7.x) to remediate the secret leakage in web UI error messages and logs.

Fix this in Argo Cd Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.

Scan for this in your stack

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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-2021-23135 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