Description
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.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected | Fixed |
|---|---|---|---|
| redhat-developer | gitops-operator | < 1.16.2 | 1.16.2 |
| Red Hat | Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.16 | — | — |
| Red Hat | Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.17 | — | — |
| Red Hat | Red Hat OpenShift GitOps 1.18 | — | — |
| Red Hat | Red Hat OpenShift GitOps | — | — |
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
openSUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| openSUSE Leap 16.0 | govulncheck-vulndb | 0.0.20260723T184607-160000.1.1 | openSUSE-SU-2026:21483-1 |
| openSUSE Leap 15.6 | govulncheck-vulndb | 0.0.20251230T014957-150000.1.134.1 | SUSE-SU-2026:0037-1 |
Affected packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected | Fixed | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Go | github.com/redhat-developer/gitops-operator | < 1.16.2 | 1.16.2 | GHSA-pcqx-8qww-7f4v |
| Go | github.com/redhat-developer/gitops-operator | all versions | — | GO-2025-4242 |
Advisories 3
- openSUSE-SU-2026:21483-1 Security update for govulncheck-vulndb SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Jul 31, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2026:0037-1 Security update for govulncheck-vulndb SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Mar 23, 2026
- WID-SEC-2025-2861 Red Hat OpenShift GitOps: Schwachstelle ermöglicht Erlangen von Administratorrechten BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Jan 22, 2026
References
- RHSA-2025:23203 vendor-advisory
- RHSA-2025:23206 vendor-advisory
- RHSA-2025:23207 vendor-advisory
- RHSA-2026:1017 vendor-advisory
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-13888 vdb-entry
- RHBZ#2418361 issue-tracking
- https://github.com/redhat-developer/gitops-operator/commit/bc6ac3e03d7c8b3db5d8f1770c868396a4c2dcef
- https://github.com/redhat-developer/gitops-operator/pull/897
- https://github.com/redhat-developer/gitops-operator/releases/tag/v1.16.2