dbcve.org
Ldap AgentApplication · Okta

CVE-2023-0392

MEDIUM · 6.7 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-11-08
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.18 or later.
See remediation →
69/100
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 LDAP Agent Update service with versions prior to 5.18 used an unquoted path, which could allow arbitrary code execution.

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 LDAP Agent Update service in versions prior to 5.18 contains an unquoted service path vulnerability. This allows an attacker with write access to an intermediate directory in the service's binary path to place a malicious executable that gets executed when the service starts, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution with the service's privileges.

MitigationUpgrade the LDAP Agent Update service to version 5.18 or later to obtain the patched binary with properly quoted paths. Alternatively, verify the service binary path is correctly quoted and review filesystem permissions on all directories in the path.

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
Ldap AgentApplication
Affected:< 5.18

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
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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 Okta LDAP Agent installation and version
    Check for the Okta LDAP Agent service using the Windows Service Control Manager (services.msc) or via command line: 'sc query' or 'Get-Service' in PowerShell. Look for a service named 'Okta LDAP Agent' or similar. Check the installed version by examining the binary properties in Program Files or Program Files (x86), or check the Windows Registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Okta if present.
    Affected if The Okta LDAP Agent is installed and the version is below 5.18 (e.g., 5.17.x, 5.16.x, etc.)
  2. Retrieve the service binary path
    Use the command 'sc qc <service_name>' or 'Get-WmiObject Win32_Service -Filter "Name='<service_name>'" | Select-Object PathName' to obtain the full path to the service executable as configured in the Windows service definition.
    Affected if The displayed path contains spaces and is not enclosed in quotation marks (e.g., C:\Program Files\Okta\ldap agent\update.exe instead of "C:\Program Files\Okta\ldap agent\update.exe")
  3. Inspect directory permissions in the service path
    For each directory component in the unquoted service binary path (e.g., C:\Program Files, C:\Program Files\Okta, C:\Program Files\Okta\ldap agent), right-click the folder in Windows Explorer, go to Properties > Security, or use 'icacls <directory_path>' from an elevated command prompt to review the Access Control List (ACL).
    Affected if Any non-administrator or low-privilege user (or an attacker-compromised account) has Write or Write+Execute permissions on any directory in the path hierarchy above the service executable, allowing them to place a malicious binary that would be executed upon service restart.

You are affected if the Okta LDAP Agent version is below 5.18, the service binary path is unquoted, and an unprivileged attacker can write to any directory in the path hierarchy of the service executable.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 5.18 or later
Fixed in 5.18
Interim mitigation

Upgrade the LDAP Agent Update service to version 5.18 or later to obtain the patched binary with properly quoted paths. Alternatively, verify the service binary path is correctly quoted and review filesystem permissions on all directories in the path.

Recommended fix High confidence

5.18

  1. Back up the current LDAP Agent configuration and data directory
  2. Stop the LDAP Agent Update service
  3. Download Okta LDAP Agent version 5.18 or later from the Okta admin dashboard or Okta downloads portal
  4. Install the upgraded LDAP Agent version 5.18
  5. Verify the installation was successful and the service is running
  6. Confirm the service path is now properly quoted (check the service binary path in Windows Registry or service configuration)

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Ldap Agent Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,420
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,272.

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-2023-0392 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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