Insecure permissions in external-secrets v0.9.16 allows attackers to access sensitive…
Priority MEDIUM 49CWE-277Published · Updated
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- No fix listed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CISA ADP. Fix status from CNA.
Summary
Insecure permissions in external-secrets v0.9.16 allows attackers to access sensitive data and escalate privileges by obtaining the service account's token.
Why it matters now
Exploitation None reported CISA SSVC · not in CISA KEV
EPSS 0.00421 36th percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix No fix listed No fixed version in the sources yet
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- Yes
- Technical impact
- Total
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | all versions | — | No fix listed | CNA |
- — Vendor— Affected all versions Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 1
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:external-secrets:external_secrets_operator:0.9.16:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 0.9.16 | Vulnerable | external-secrets |
- cpe:2.3:a:external-secrets:external_secrets_operator:0.9.16:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 0.9.16 Vulnerable ·external-secrets
Remediation
No fixed version listed by the sources yet.
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2024-36540
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-h9mr-jrr6-mjrf
References
More external-secrets External Secrets Operator vulnerabilities
- TI-2024-30153 External Secrets Operator vulnerable to privilege escalation CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
- TI-2026-18338 External Secrets Operator insecurely retrieves secrets through the getSecretKey templating function CVSS 4.0CRITICAL 9.3
- TI-2026-27206 External Secrets Operator has DNS exfiltration via getHostByName in its v2 template engine CVSS 4.0HIGH 7.1
Sources
- CVE-2024-36540 · CVE Program
- CVE-2024-36540 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-h9mr-jrr6-mjrf · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences