CVE intelligence and bounded remediation

CVE-2022-35976 — The GitOps Tools Extension for VSCode relies on kubeconfigs in order to communicate with Kubernetes clusters

Critical CVSS 9.8

The GitOps Tools Extension for VSCode relies on kubeconfigs in order to communicate with Kubernetes clusters. A specially crafted kubeconfig leads to arbitrary code execution on behalf of the user running VSCode. Users relying on kubeconfigs that are generated or altered by other processes or users are affected by this issue. Please note that the vulnerability is specific to this extension, and the same kubeconfig would not result in arbitrary code execution when used with kubectl. Using only trust-worthy kubeconfigs is a safe mitigation. However, updating to the latest version of the extension is still highly recommended.

Severity
Critical
CVSS
9.8 (3.1)
Published
2022-08-18
CISA KEV
Not currently listed
Ecosystem
software/application
Weaknesses
CWE-78

Affected products

  • weave / gitops_tools

Matched remediation archetype

Command, code, expression, and template injection

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Check exposure

  • Trace untrusted values to process execution, interpreters, evaluators, template engines, dynamic imports, and administrative scripting features.
  • Determine whether the affected path is reachable across each trust boundary and which service account or host privilege it inherits.
  • Review configuration for optional execution features, unsafe compatibility modes, and shell invocation.

Remediate safely

  • Replace string-built commands or evaluated code with fixed operations and structured argument APIs that do not invoke a shell.
  • Use strict allowlists for operation identifiers and reject unexpected input before it reaches any interpreter.
  • Update the affected component and add inert regression tests covering metacharacters, encoding variants, and alternate request paths.

Authoritative sources

Complete CVE record and remediation plan

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