CVE-2023-43660 | SSH key password bypassed in warpgate

Warpgate is a smart SSH, HTTPS and MySQL bastion host for Linux that doesn't need special client apps. The SSH key verification for a user can be bypassed by sending an SSH key offer without a signature. This allows bypassing authentication under following conditions: 1. The attacker knows the username and a valid target name 2. The attacked knows the user's public key and 3. Only SSH public key authentication is required for the user account. This issue has been addressed in version 0.8.1. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability.

Published: 2023-09-27 Last update: 2024-11-21 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2023-43660 is rated Low Risk (22.9/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.04%). Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2023-43660

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2025-11-21 0.12% 0.04% -0.08%
2 2025-11-18 0.05% 0.12% +0.07%
3 2025-04-15 — 0.05% —

Full EPSS history (8 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2023-43660

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
4.8 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:N Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:L)
Some sensitive info could get out, but not a total data dump.
Integrity (I:L)
Attackers could change some data, but it’s limited—not everything goes.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.
 2.2 2.5 [email protected]
8.1 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
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.
 2.2 5.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2023-43660

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2023-43660

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
warpgate_project warpgate < 0.8.1 cpe:2.3:a:warpgate_project:warpgate:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2023-43660

cvelogic Threat Intelligence