dbcve.org
CheckmkApplication

CVE-2023-31208

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-05-17
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.0.0 or later.
See remediation →
94/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable 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
Improper neutralization of livestatus command delimiters in the RestAPI in Checkmk < 2.0.0p36, < 2.1.0p28, and < 2.2.0b8 (beta) allows arbitrary livestatus command execution for authorized users.

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

Improper neutralization of livestatus command delimiters in Checkmk's RestAPI allows authenticated users to inject and execute arbitrary livestatus commands. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input sanitization of command parameters passed through the API, enabling command injection in the livestatus subsystem used for monitoring data queries.

MitigationUpgrade Checkmk to version 2.0.0p36, 2.1.0p28, 2.2.0b8 or later to patch the delimiter neutralization flaw. Restrict RestAPI access to necessary users only as a defense-in-depth measure.

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
CheckmkApplication
Affected:= 2.0.0= 2.1.0= 2.2.0
CheckmkApplication
Affected:< 2.0.0

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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 installed Checkmk version
    Run 'cmk --version' or check /etc/check_mk/version.conf (or the UI: About > Version information)
    Affected if Version is 2.0.0, 2.1.0, 2.2.0, or any version below 2.0.0 (Tribe29) or within these major.minor branches before the patches (2.0.0p36, 2.1.0p28, 2.2.0b8)
  2. Verify RestAPI is enabled
    Check if the RestAPI module is configured: look for 'api' in /omd/sites/<site>/etc/apache/conf.d/ or check the site configuration via 'cmk -A' or the Setup > General > API settings in the web UI
    Affected if RestAPI is accessible and user authentication is possible (the exploit requires an authenticated RestAPI session)
  3. Confirm livestatus is active
    Verify the livestatus module is enabled: check for a livestatus socket at /var/run/nagios/rw/live.sock or /omd/sites/<site>/tmp/run/live.sock, or confirm 'livestatus' is in the enabled modules in Setup > General > Module extensions > Datasources
    Affected if Livestatus is enabled (the vulnerability exploits the livestatus command subsystem)
  4. Identify users with RestAPI access
    Review API users in Setup > Users > (select user) > Credentials > 'REST API' permission box is checked, or check the authed() function configuration in ~/etc/check_mk/conf.d/
    Affected if Any user has RestAPI authentication enabled (authenticated users can inject livestatus commands)

Your environment is affected if you run a vulnerable Checkmk version (pre-2.0.0p36/2.1.0p28/2.2.0b8) AND have RestAPI enabled with at least one authenticated user AND have livestatus module active.

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 2.0.0 or later
Fixed in 2.0.0
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Checkmk to version 2.0.0p36, 2.1.0p28, 2.2.0b8 or later to patch the delimiter neutralization flaw. Restrict RestAPI access to necessary users only as a defense-in-depth measure.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to Checkmk 2.0.0p36+, 2.1.0p28+, or 2.2.0b8+ (or latest stable 2.3.x)

  1. 1. Identify the current Checkmk version installed using 'cmk --version' or the web interface
  2. 2. Determine which version branch you are running (2.0.x, 2.1.x, or 2.2.x)
  3. 3. For Checkmk 2.0.x: Upgrade to version 2.0.0p36 or later
  4. 4. For Checkmk 2.1.x: Upgrade to version 2.1.0p28 or later
  5. 5. For Checkmk 2.2.x (beta): Upgrade to version 2.2.0b8 or later
  6. 6. Download the appropriate update from the official Checkmk download site (checkmk.com)
  7. 7. Follow the standard Checkmk upgrade documentation to apply the update
  8. 8. After upgrade, verify the REST API functionality still works as expected
Caveat Review Checkmk release notes for any breaking changes between your current version and the target upgrade version

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

Fix this in Checkmk Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 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

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-31208 — 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-2023-31208 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