Evidence used
- No CISA KEV confirmation is currently recorded.
- EPSS is 0.69% for the current model date.
BlackTreeCVE IntelligenceFull vulnerability report · 2025
CVE-2025-13888High confidence
Openshift-gitops-operator: openshift gitops: namespace admin cluster takeover via privileged jobs
redhat-developer · gitops-operator
Official source article: Red Hat RHSA-2025:23203 ↗. Check the applicable product and release in the original source.
9.1CriticalCVSS 3.1
Within 7 days
Patch availableCritical technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.
R
Open reassessment dashboard →Operational reassessment
Published severity in operational context
Published severityCritical→Operational priority:Critical, unchanged from published severity.unchanged
Compensating controls
- Validate the affected product branch and deploy the verified fixed release.
- Restrict the affected network interface to trusted sources where business-safe.
- Monitor vendor guidance and exploitation sources for a material change.
Verification
- Confirm that the asset runs redhat-developer gitops-operator and falls inside the recorded affected range.
- Verify the installed build against the product-specific fixed version after deployment.
- Validate exposure, authentication requirements and compensating controls in the actual environment.
- Reopen this reassessment when CVSS, KEV, EPSS, exploit evidence or remediation changes.
Open-source package ranges1 source-attributed range
These OSV and GitHub advisory ranges apply only to the named package and ecosystem. A listed fixed version is not a universal product patch or proof that an update is installed.
| Ecosystem and package | Affected range | First fixed version | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| gogithub.com/redhat-developer/gitops-operator | < 1.16.2 | 1.16.2 | GitHub advisory ↗github reviewed aggregator · 22 Jan 2026 |
Critical technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.
Patch available01
What, why and how
A flaw was found in OpenShift GitOps. Namespace admins can create ArgoCD Custom Resources (CRs) that trick the system into granting them elevated permissions in other namespaces, including privileged namespaces. An authenticated attacker can then use these elevated permissions to create privileged workloads that run on master nodes, effectively giving them root access to the entire cluster.
What
A flaw was found in OpenShift GitOps. Namespace admins can create ArgoCD Custom Resources (CRs) that trick the system into granting them elevated permissions in other namespaces, including privileged namespaces. An authenticated attacker can then use these elevated permissions to create privileged workloads that run on master nodes, effectively giving them root access to the entire cluster.
Why
A product incorrectly assigns a privilege to a particular actor, creating an unintended sphere of control for that actor.
How
An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation with elevated privileges. If successful, the issue may gain additional privileges.
What
A flaw was found in OpenShift GitOps. Namespace admins can create ArgoCD Custom Resources (CRs) that trick the system into granting them elevated permissions in other namespaces, including privileged namespaces. An authenticated attacker can then use these elevated permissions to create privileged workloads that run on master nodes, effectively giving them root access to the entire cluster.
Why
A product incorrectly assigns a privilege to a particular actor, creating an unintended sphere of control for that actor.
How
An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation with elevated privileges. If successful, the issue may gain additional privileges.
02
Exploit reality and attack path
CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.
Observed exploitation No confirmed evidence
?
Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.No CISA KEV match was present at the last successful refresh. This means no confirmation from that source, not proof of no exploitation.
Public PoC / exploit material None recorded
?
Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.No exploit-tagged reference or CISA SSVC proof-of-concept state is currently recorded. Research may still exist outside the structured feeds.
- Likely attack path
- a network path → Incorrect Privilege Assignment → gain additional privileges
- Attack surface
- Network
- Privileges required
- High: elevated access is required
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
- Security boundary
- Changed: exploitation can affect a different security authority
- Weakness
?
CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness. - CWE-266 ↗
CWE-266: Incorrect Privilege Assignment. A product incorrectly assigns a privilege to a particular actor, creating an unintended sphere of control for that actor.
- CVSS vector
?
CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity. CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:HCommon Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.
AVNetworkAttack vector: The vulnerable component can be reached over a network.ACLowAttack complexity: No specialised conditions are required beyond attacker-controlled input.PRHighPrivileges required: The attacker needs elevated or administrative privileges.UINoneUser interaction: No action by another user is required.SChangedScope: The attack can affect a component governed by a different security authority.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.IHighIntegrity impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.AHighAvailability impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.- Post-exploitation / living off the land
- No specific living-off-the-land technique is confirmed in the structured sources. Monitor normal administration tools for activity inconsistent with the affected service's baseline.
03
Patch and workaround
Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.
- Status
?
Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change. - Patch available
- Affected
- gitops-operator: < 1.16.2
- Fixed
- Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.16: sha256:c41c99f360a2515bce55c42e309e2c72500ba66d3a2c461412dee7de5ea9a9fa < *
- Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.17: sha256:27e7a59bb5c5f60be7509e5f4f07f4181d62e6583a943c46f56f568bfc30c2c1 < *
- Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.18: sha256:3eb6308c58365182b4b5b5aabf35754d821e25b8a04b0595900fb47d52cd3ecc < *, sha256:43ba408b8ed58259bf338fd29260d936fbde9846f772d0580b3e7486ef8ea300 < *
- Action
- Review the linked authoritative reference and apply the recorded fixed release appropriate to the affected product branch.
- Workaround
- No verified workaround is recorded. If business-safe, reduce exposure to the affected interface and allow only trusted sources until authoritative guidance is available.
04
Evidence and provenance
Published 15 Dec 2025 · Last source change 22 Jan 2026, 15:50 UTC · CWE-266 · Incorrect Privilege Assignment
CVE recordCVE.org · 5.2
CVSS sourceCNA
EPSS source FIRST · tracked since 2026-08-14
?
The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2025-203383
Product sourceCNA
Remediation sourceCVE/CNA references
CWE sourceCNA
NVD statusNVD not scheduled
Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.
Material change intelligence
View recent updates ↗What changed after publication
- Affected versionsThe structured affected or fixed version information changed.CNA ↗
- Before
- < 1.16.2 · Fixed: sha256:c41c99f360a2515bce55c42e309e2c72500ba66d3a2c461412dee7de5ea9a9fa < *; sha256:27e7a59bb5c5f60be7509e5f4f07f4181d62e6583a943c46f56f568bfc30c2c1 < *; sha256:3eb6308c58365182b4b5b5aabf35754d821e25b8a04b0595900fb47d52cd3ecc < *; sha256:43ba408b8ed58259bf338fd29260d936fbde9846f772d0580b3e7486ef8ea300 < *
- After
- gitops-operator: < 1.16.2 · Fixed: Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.16: sha256:c41c99f360a2515bce55c42e309e2c72500ba66d3a2c461412dee7de5ea9a9fa < *; Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.17: sha256:27e7a59bb5c5f60be7509e5f4f07f4181d62e6583a943c46f56f568bfc30c2c1 < *; Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.18: sha256:3eb6308c58365182b4b5b5aabf35754d821e25b8a04b0595900fb47d52cd3ecc < *, sha256:43ba408b8ed58259bf338fd29260d936fbde9846f772d0580b3e7486ef8ea300 < *
CVE published
Fixed release or patch reference recorded
Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report
- CVE
- Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
- CVSS
- Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
- EPSS
- Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
- CWE
- Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
- CNA
- CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
- CISA ADP
- Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
- NVD
- National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
- CERT / CSIRT
- A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
- PoC
- Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
- CSAF
- Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
- LoTL
- Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.