CVE-2023-29011 [High] | Security Vulnerability in Git For Windows

Git for Windows, the Windows port of Git, ships with an executable called `connect.exe`, which implements a SOCKS5 proxy that can be used to connect e.g. to SSH servers via proxies when certain ports are blocked for outgoing connections. The location of `connect.exe`'s config file is hard-coded as `/etc/connectrc` which will typically be interpreted as `C:\etc\connectrc`. Since `C:\etc` can be created by any authenticated user, this makes `connect.exe` susceptible to malicious files being placed there by other users on the same multi-user machine. The problem has been patched in Git for Windows v2.40.1. As a workaround, create the folder `etc` on all drives where Git commands are run, and remove read/write access from those folders. Alternatively, watch out for malicious `<drive>:\etc\connectrc` files on multi-user machines.

#	Date	Old EPSS score	New EPSS score	Delta (New - Old)
1	2026-06-15	0.05%	0.38%	+0.33%
2	2023-05-05	0.04%	0.05%	+0.01%
3	2023-04-26	—	0.04%	—

Date

Old EPSS score

New EPSS score

Delta (New - Old)

2026-06-15

0.05%

0.38%

+0.33%

2023-05-05

0.04%

0.05%

+0.01%

2023-04-26

—

0.04%

—

Base score	Version	Severity	Vector	Exploitability	Impact	Score source
7.5	3.1	HIGH	`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H` Click to expand Attack vector (AV:L) They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by. Attack complexity (AC:H) Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work. Privileges required (PR:L) A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin. User interaction (UI:R) A real person has to do something—click, install, enable—otherwise it doesn’t land. Scope (S:C) Breaking this can reach past the original component and bite other resources—bigger blast radius. Confidentiality (C:H) Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way. Integrity (I:H) They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt. Availability (A:H) Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.	0.8	6.0	[email protected]
7.8	3.1	HIGH	`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H` Click to expand Attack vector (AV:L) They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by. Attack complexity (AC:L) Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup. Privileges required (PR:N) No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough. User interaction (UI:R) A real person has to do something—click, install, enable—otherwise it doesn’t land. Scope (S:U) Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems. Confidentiality (C:H) Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way. Integrity (I:H) They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt. Availability (A:H) Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.	1.8	5.9	[email protected]

Base score

Version

Severity

Vector

Exploitability

Impact

Score source

7.5

3.1

HIGH

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand

Attack vector (AV:L): They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:H): Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:L): A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:R): A real person has to do something—click, install, enable—otherwise it doesn’t land.
Scope (S:C): Breaking this can reach past the original component and bite other resources—bigger blast radius.
Confidentiality (C:H): Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H): They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H): Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.

0.8

6.0

[email protected]

7.8

3.1

HIGH

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand

Attack vector (AV:L): They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L): Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N): No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:R): A real person has to do something—click, install, enable—otherwise it doesn’t land.
Scope (S:U): Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H): Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H): They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H): Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.

1.8

5.9

[email protected]

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2023-29011

Vendor	Product	Version	Raw CPE
git_for_windows_project	git_for_windows	< 2.40.1	cpe:2.3:a:git_for_windows_project:git_for_windows::::::::

References for CVE-2023-29011

URL	Tags
https://github.com/git-for-windows/git/releases/tag/v2.40.1.windows.1	Release Notes
https://github.com/git-for-windows/git/security/advisories/GHSA-g4fv-xjqw-q7jm	Vendor Advisory

URL

CVE-2023-29011 | Git for Windows's config file of `connect.exe` is susceptible to malicious placing

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2023-29011

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2023-29011

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2023-29011

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2023-29011

References for CVE-2023-29011