Cloud FoundationApplication · VMware
CVE-2022-22948
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 · uneditedThe vCenter Server contains an information disclosure vulnerability due to improper permission of files. A malicious actor with non-administrative access to the vCenter Server may exploit this issue to gain access to sensitive information.
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 · moderate confidencevCenter Server contains an information disclosure vulnerability caused by improper file permissions. A malicious actor with non-administrative access can exploit this to read sensitive files that should be restricted, potentially exposing credentials, configurations, or other confidential data.
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
Cloud FoundationApplication
>= 3.0, < 3.11>= 4.0, < 4.4.1
Vcenter ServerApplication
= 6.5= 6.7= 7.0CVSS 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:3.1/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify installed vCenter Server versionAccess the vSphere Client summary page or run 'ls -la /etc/vmware/' to read version files. Alternatively, use the VMware HTML5 Client and check the 'About' section under System -> System Information.Affected if The installed version is 6.5, 6.7, 7.0, or falls within Cloud Foundation 3.0-3.10.x or 4.0-4.4.0.
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Confirm low-privilege user accounts existList all user accounts in vCenter Server by accessing Users and Groups in the vSphere Client under Administration -> Users and Groups. Identify any non-administrative or read-only role accounts.Affected if Any low-privilege or non-administrative user accounts are present in the vCenter.
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Test read access to sensitive configuration directoriesUsing a low-privilege user account (or checking permissions with 'ls -la' via SSH as a non-root user), attempt to access /etc/vmware-vpx/, /storage/db/, or other directories containing configuration and credential files.Affected if A non-administrative user can list or read files in sensitive system directories that should be restricted to administrator-only access.
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Review file permissions on key system directoriesConnect to the vCenter Server Appliance via SSH and run 'ls -la' on directories such as /etc/vmware/, /storage/db/vcdb, and /var/log/. Check if files are mode 644 or directories are mode 755 when they should be 600 or 700.Affected if Sensitive configuration or log files have overly permissive read access (world-readable or group-readable).
You are affected if your vCenter Server or Cloud Foundation version falls within the affected ranges AND low-privilege users can read files in sensitive system directories due to overly permissive file permissions.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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.
dbcve · scoped3.114.4.1
Apply the VMware security patch for CVE-2022-22948 to remediate the improper file permissions. Until patched, limit non-administrative user access to the vCenter Server as a compensating control.
vCenter Server 6.5 -> 6.5 U3p or later; vCenter Server 6.7 -> 6.7 U3o or later; vCenter Server 7.0 -> 7.0 U3k or later; Cloud Foundation 3.x -> 3.11; Cloud Foundation 4.x -> 4.4.1
- Check current vCenter Server version by logging into the vSphere Client and navigating to System Information, or by running 'vpxd -v' from the command line
- For vCenter Server 6.5: Upgrade to version 6.5 Update 3p or later (specifically a version containing the security patch for CVE-2022-22948)
- For vCenter Server 6.7: Upgrade to version 6.7 Update 3o or later (specifically a version containing the security patch for CVE-2022-22948)
- For vCenter Server 7.0: Upgrade to version 7.0 Update 3k or later (specifically a version containing the security patch for CVE-2022-22948)
- For Cloud Foundation 3.x: Upgrade to version 3.11 or later
- For Cloud Foundation 4.x: Upgrade to version 4.4.1 or later
- Before upgrading, take a complete backup of the vCenter Server and its embedded database
- Schedule a maintenance window as the upgrade requires downtime
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Cloud Foundation
Exploited in the wild — priority engagement
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-22948 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2022-22948 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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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.
- 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