dbcve.org
Vcenter ServerApplication · VMware

CVE-2022-31697

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-12-13
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
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
The vCenter Server contains an information disclosure vulnerability due to the logging of credentials in plaintext. A malicious actor with access to a workstation that invoked a vCenter Server Appliance ISO operation (Install/Upgrade/Migrate/Restore) can access plaintext passwords used during that operation.

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

vCenter Server Appliance logs user-provided passwords in plaintext during ISO-based operations (Install/Upgrade/Migrate/Restore). A malicious actor with access to the workstation that initiated any of these operations can retrieve plaintext credentials from the logs, potentially gaining administrative access to vCenter Server.

MitigationRestrict physical and logical access to workstations used for vCenter ISO operations and sanitize or remove log files containing credentials. Apply VMware's patch when available.

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
Vcenter ServerApplication
Affected:= 6.5= 6.7= 7.0
Cloud FoundationApplication
Affected:>= 3.0

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. Identify installed vCenter Server version
    Log into the vCenter Server Appliance via SSH or use the vSphere Client to view the version. Run 'vmware -v' or check the Summary tab in the vSphere Web Client. For Cloud Foundation, check the SDDC Manager console for the version.
    Affected if Version is 6.5, 6.7, or 7.0 for vCenter Server, or 3.0 or higher for Cloud Foundation
  2. Determine if ISO-based operations were performed
    Review any records or documentation of ISO-based operations (Install, Upgrade, Migrate, or Restore) performed on the vCenter Server. Check with administrators who may have initiated these operations.
    Affected if Any ISO-based Install, Upgrade, Migrate, or Restore operation was performed using this vCenter Server
  3. Locate and inspect vCenter log files
    Access the vCenter Server Appliance via SSH and navigate to the log directory. Common log paths include /var/log/vmware/vpxd/ and /var/log/vmware/appliance/. Use 'grep -r "password"' or similar commands to search for plaintext password strings in log files.
    Affected if Log files contain plaintext password strings from ISO-based operations
  4. Check for log files in operation initiator's workstation
    If the ISO operation was initiated from a remote workstation, examine that workstation for log files. On Windows, check %TEMP% or installation log directories. On Linux, check /var/log or the user's home directory for installation logs.
    Affected if Log files exist on the workstation that initiated the ISO operation containing plaintext credentials

You are affected if your vCenter Server version is 6.5, 6.7, 7.0 (or Cloud Foundation >= 3.0) AND ISO-based Install/Upgrade/Migrate/Restore operations were performed, resulting in plaintext passwords present in logs on the vCenter Appliance or the initiating workstation.

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Restrict physical and logical access to workstations used for vCenter ISO operations and sanitize or remove log files containing credentials. Apply VMware's patch when available.

Fix this in Vcenter Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation12.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
28.0 hours of engineering $4,880
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $7,808.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-31697 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2022-31697 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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