CVE-2023-49673 is a high-severity cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability affecting the Jenkins NeuVector Vulnerability Scanner Plugin versions 1.22 and earlier. Jenkins is a widely used open-source automation server for continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD). The NeuVector Vulnerability Scanner Plugin integrates vulnerability scanning capabilities into Jenkins pipelines. This vulnerability allows an attacker to craft a malicious web request that, when executed by an authenticated Jenkins user, can cause the plugin to connect to an attacker-specified hostname and port using attacker-supplied credentials. The core issue stems from insufficient CSRF protections in the plugin, enabling unauthorized commands to be executed via forged requests. The CVSS 3.1 base score of 8.8 reflects the vulnerability's network attack vector (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), no privileges required (PR:N), but requiring user interaction (UI:R). The impact is severe, affecting confidentiality, integrity, and availability (C:H/I:H/A:H) because the attacker can potentially exfiltrate sensitive data, manipulate scanning results, or disrupt the scanning process. Although no known exploits in the wild have been reported yet, the vulnerability's nature and severity make it a critical concern for Jenkins users, especially those integrating NeuVector scanning into their CI/CD workflows. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-352, which corresponds to CSRF attacks, highlighting the need for proper anti-CSRF tokens and validation mechanisms in web applications and plugins.

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses significant risks, particularly for enterprises relying on Jenkins for software development and deployment pipelines. Exploitation could lead to unauthorized connections to attacker-controlled systems, potentially exposing sensitive build environment credentials or internal network resources. This could facilitate further lateral movement, data exfiltration, or injection of malicious code into software builds, undermining software supply chain security. Given the critical role of CI/CD pipelines in modern software development, disruption or compromise could delay releases, damage reputations, and violate compliance requirements such as GDPR if personal data is involved. Organizations in sectors with stringent regulatory oversight, such as finance, healthcare, and critical infrastructure, are especially vulnerable to the cascading effects of such a compromise. The requirement for user interaction means phishing or social engineering could be leveraged to trigger the exploit, increasing the attack surface. Overall, the vulnerability threatens the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the software development lifecycle within affected organizations.

To mitigate this vulnerability, European organizations should immediately update the Jenkins NeuVector Vulnerability Scanner Plugin to a version that patches CVE-2023-49673 once available. Until a patch is released, organizations should implement strict network segmentation to limit Jenkins server access and restrict outbound connections from Jenkins to only trusted hosts and ports. Enforce multi-factor authentication (MFA) for Jenkins users to reduce the risk of successful social engineering attacks that could trigger CSRF exploits. Additionally, review and harden Jenkins security settings, including enabling CSRF protection globally and validating plugin configurations for any custom endpoints exposed. Monitoring Jenkins logs for unusual outbound connections or suspicious user activity can provide early detection of exploitation attempts. Educate users about the risks of phishing and the importance of not interacting with unsolicited Jenkins-related requests. Finally, consider employing web application firewalls (WAFs) or reverse proxies with CSRF protection capabilities to add an additional security layer.