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MetabaseApplication

CVE-2023-23629

MEDIUM · 6.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-01-28
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 0.43.7.1 / 0.44.6.1 or later.
See remediation →
67/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable

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
Metabase is an open source data analytics platform. Affected versions are subject to Improper Privilege Management. As intended, recipients of dashboards subscriptions can view the data as seen by the creator of that subscription. This allows someone with greater access to data to create a dashboard subscription, add people with fewer data privileges, and all recipients of that subscription receive the same data: the charts shown in the email would abide by the privileges of the user who created the subscription. The issue is users with fewer privileges who can view a dashboard are able to add themselves to a dashboard subscription created by someone with additional data privileges, and thus get access to more data via email. This issue is patched in versions 0.43.7.1, 1.43.7.1, 0.44.6.1, 1.44.6.1, 0.45.2.1, and 1.45.2.1. On Metabase instances running Enterprise Edition, admins can disable the "Subscriptions and Alerts" permission for groups that have restricted data permissions, as a workaround.

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

This is an Improper Privilege Management vulnerability in Metabase's dashboard subscription system. Users with limited data privileges who can view a dashboard created by a higher-privileged user can add themselves to that dashboard's subscription, thereby receiving email alerts containing data they wouldn't normally have access to. The vulnerability stems from the lack of separation between 'view' and 'subscribe' permissions in the subscription mechanism.

MitigationApply the patched versions (0.43.7.1, 1.43.7.1, 0.44.6.1, 1.44.6.1, 0.45.2.1, or 1.45.2.1). For Enterprise Edition instances, disable the 'Subscriptions and Alerts' permission for groups with restricted data permissions as a workaround until patching.

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
MetabaseApplication
Affected:< 0.43.7.1>= 0.44.0, < 0.44.6.1>= 0.45.0, < 0.45.2.1>= 1.0.0, < 1.43.7.1>= 1.44.0, < 1.44.6.1>= 1.45.0, < 1.45.2.1

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
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:L/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 Metabase version
    Access the Metabase admin panel and navigate to Settings > About, or query the API endpoint /api/health. The version is also displayed on the login page footer.
    Affected if The installed version falls within any of these ranges: < 0.43.7.1; >= 0.44.0 and < 0.44.6.1; >= 0.45.0 and < 0.45.2.1; >= 1.0.0 and < 1.43.7.1; >= 1.44.0 and < 1.44.6.1; >= 1.45.0 and < 1.45.2.1
  2. Verify dashboard subscription feature is accessible
    Log in as a low-privilege user with view-only access to a dashboard created by another user. Navigate to that dashboard and attempt to access the subscription/alert configuration option.
    Affected if A user with only view permissions on a dashboard can access the subscription add interface without being blocked.
  3. Inspect group permission configurations
    As an administrator, go to Settings > Permissions > Data. Review the 'Subscriptions and Alerts' permission for groups that have restricted data access. Check if groups with limited view-only data access have this permission enabled.
    Affected if Groups with view-only or no data access permissions have the 'Subscriptions and Alerts' permission set to 'Yes' or enabled.
  4. Audit existing dashboard subscriptions
    Use the admin API endpoint GET /api/dashboard/:id/subscriptions or navigate to Admin > Dashboard Subscriptions. List all active subscriptions and check which users are subscribed to dashboards they did not create.
    Affected if Users are subscribed to dashboards where they only have view permission and do not have full data access to the underlying data sources.

You are affected if your Metabase version is within the vulnerable ranges and users with limited data privileges can subscribe to dashboards they did not create.

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 0.43.7.1 / 0.44.6.1 / 0.45.2.1 or later
Fixed in 0.43.7.10.44.6.10.45.2.1
Interim mitigation

Apply the patched versions (0.43.7.1, 1.43.7.1, 0.44.6.1, 1.44.6.1, 0.45.2.1, or 1.45.2.1). For Enterprise Edition instances, disable the 'Subscriptions and Alerts' permission for groups with restricted data permissions as a workaround until patching.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to version 0.43.7.1, 0.44.6.1, or 0.45.2.1 (or the corresponding Enterprise Edition versions 1.43.7.1, 1.44.6.1, or 1.45.2.1) based on your current version branch

  1. 1. Identify the currently running Metabase version by checking the Metabase admin panel under 'Settings' > 'About' or by inspecting the startup logs
  2. 2. Plan the upgrade to the appropriate fixed version based on your current version branch: if running 0.42.x upgrade to 0.43.7.1, if running 0.44.x upgrade to 0.44.6.1, if running 0.45.x upgrade to 0.45.2.1, or if running 1.43.x upgrade to 1.43.7.1
  3. 3. Back up your Metabase application database before performing the upgrade
  4. 4. Download the JAR file for the target fixed version from the official Metabase downloads page (metabase.com/download)
  5. 5. Stop the running Metabase instance
  6. 6. Replace the existing Metabase JAR file with the new version
  7. 7. Start Metabase and verify the application runs successfully
  8. 8. Log in as an administrator and verify the version under 'Settings' > 'About' shows the patched version
Caveat Review Metabase release notes for your target version to check for any breaking changes or migration requirements; major version jumps may require additional migration steps

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

Fix this in Metabase Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing5.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
17.0 hours of engineering $2,970
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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-2023-23629 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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