CVE-2024-52799
📋 TL;DR
The Argo Workflows Helm Chart prior to version 0.44.0 grants excessive Kubernetes privileges to workflow roles, specifically the ability to execute commands in any pod within the same namespace. This allows attackers who can trick users into running malicious workflow templates to achieve arbitrary code execution and compromise the entire namespace. This affects users of the Argo Workflows Helm Chart with appVersion 3.4+ and potentially some users with older versions depending on executor configuration.
💻 Affected Systems
- Argo Workflows Helm Chart
⚠️ Manual Verification Required
This CVE does not have specific version information in our database, so automatic vulnerability detection cannot determine if your system is affected.
Why? The CVE database entry doesn't specify which versions are vulnerable (no version ranges provided by the vendor/NVD).
🔒 Custom verification scripts are available for registered users. Sign up free to download automated test scripts.
- Review the CVE details at NVD
- Check vendor security advisories for your specific version
- Test if the vulnerability is exploitable in your environment
- Consider updating to the latest version as a precaution
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete compromise of all workloads in the affected Kubernetes namespace, allowing data exfiltration, lateral movement, and persistent backdoor installation.
Likely Case
Attackers with access to workflow execution can escalate privileges to execute arbitrary commands in any pod, potentially accessing sensitive data and disrupting operations.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper network segmentation, pod security policies, and minimal role-based access control (RBAC) configurations.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires convincing a user to execute a malicious workflow template, but the privilege escalation mechanism is straightforward once initial access is obtained.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 0.44.0
Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/argoproj/argo-helm/security/advisories/GHSA-fgrf-2886-4q7m
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Update Helm repository: helm repo update
2. Upgrade Argo Workflows Chart: helm upgrade argo-workflows argo/argo-workflows --version 0.44.0
3. Verify deployment and restart affected pods
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Manual RBAC Reduction
allManually edit the workflow-role ClusterRole to remove the pods/exec permission
kubectl edit clusterrole workflow-role
Remove the line: - pods/exec
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict pod security policies to limit pod creation and execution capabilities
- Apply network policies to isolate Argo Workflows namespace and limit lateral movement
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if workflow-role ClusterRole has pods/exec permission: kubectl describe clusterrole workflow-role | grep pods/execCheck Version:
helm list -n <argo-namespace> | grep argo-workflowsVerify Fix Applied:
Verify pods/exec permission is removed: kubectl describe clusterrole workflow-role | grep -i exec📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual kubectl exec commands from workflow service accounts
- Suspicious pod creation events from Argo workflows
Network Indicators:
- Unexpected outbound connections from workflow pods
- Lateral movement attempts between namespaces
SIEM Query:
source="kubernetes" AND ("pods/exec" OR "workflow-role") AND action="create"