Enterprise ServerApplication · GitHub
CVE-2023-46649
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 · uneditedA race condition in GitHub Enterprise Server was identified that could allow an attacker administrator access. To exploit this, an organization needs to be converted from a user. This vulnerability affected all versions of GitHub Enterprise Server since 3.7 and was fixed in version 3.7.19, 3.8.12, 3.9.7, 3.10.4, and 3.11.1.
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 confidenceA race condition vulnerability in GitHub Enterprise Server allows privilege escalation to administrator access by exploiting the organization conversion process from a user account. The timing-based flaw enables an attacker to manipulate the conversion workflow to gain elevated privileges. This affects all versions since 3.7.
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
Enterprise ServerApplication
>= 3.7.0, < 3.7.19>= 3.8.0, < 3.8.12>= 3.9.0, < 3.9.7>= 3.10.0, < 3.10.4= 3.11.0CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- High
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify installed GitHub Enterprise Server versionAccess the GitHub Enterprise Server management console or run 'ghe-version' via SSH if you have admin access. The version is also visible on the /setup page or in the site admin dashboard under 'About'.Affected if The installed version falls within these ranges: >= 3.7.0 and < 3.7.19; >= 3.8.0 and < 3.8.12; >= 3.9.0 and < 3.9.7; >= 3.10.0 and < 3.10.4; or equals 3.11.0.
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Review audit logs for organization conversion eventsIn the site admin dashboard, navigate to the Audit Log. Search for events containing 'organization' and 'convert' or 'transform' to identify any account-to-organization conversions performed.Affected if Any organization conversion events exist in the audit log, especially those initiated by non-administrator users or occurring in rapid succession with other privilege changes.
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Check for unexpected administrator accountsIn the site admin dashboard, go to 'Users' and review the list of administrators. Look for accounts with 'admin' or 'site_admin' roles that were created recently or are not recognized.Affected if There are administrator accounts that were created around the time of organization conversion events and are not legitimate admin accounts.
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Examine organization membership for privilege escalationReview organizations that were created via user account conversion. Check the organization owners and admin team memberships for accounts that previously had standard user privileges.Affected if Converted organizations have administrators who previously had only standard user permissions and did not go through proper admin provisioning.
You are affected if your GitHub Enterprise Server version is within the vulnerable ranges and evidence of organization conversion events exists in audit logs or unexpected admin accounts are present.
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 · scoped3.7.193.8.123.9.7
Upgrade GitHub Enterprise Server to version 3.7.19, 3.8.12, 3.9.7, 3.10.4, 3.11.1 or later. If immediate patching is not feasible, implement monitoring and alerting for organization conversion events.
Upgrade to GitHub Enterprise Server version 3.7.19, 3.8.12, 3.9.7, or 3.10.4 (minimum); recommended: 3.11.1 or latest stable release
- 1. Identify the current GitHub Enterprise Server version by checking the Management Console or running: `ghe-version`
- 2. Based on current version, determine the minimum required upgrade path: if 3.7.x upgrade to 3.7.19+, if 3.8.x upgrade to 3.8.12+, if 3.9.x upgrade to 3.9.7+, if 3.10.x upgrade to 3.10.4+
- 3. Before upgrading, perform a complete backup of the GitHub Enterprise Server instance following standard backup procedures
- 4. Upgrade GitHub Enterprise Server to the appropriate fixed version (recommended: 3.11.1 or latest stable release)
- 5. After upgrade completes, verify the new version is running: `ghe-version`
- 6. Test critical administrative functions to confirm the upgrade was successful
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Enterprise Server
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-46649 — 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-2023-46649 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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