Cyber Resilience

CVE-2023-22884

RCE in Apache Airflow ≤ 2.5.1

RCECommand Injection
Published
21 January 2023
Modified
31 March 2025
Patch / advisory
View advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 9.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.11 96th percentile
Risk Priority 97 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2023-22884 is a critical-severity Command Injection (CWE-77) vulnerability in Apache Airflow. Its CVSS base score is 9.8 (Critical).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Command and Scripting Interpreter (T1059); ranked in the top 4% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

CVE-2023-22884 is a command injection vulnerability arising from improper neutralization of special elements in commands. It affects Apache Airflow versions prior to 2.5.1 and the Apache Airflow MySQL Provider versions prior to 4.0.0, as disclosed by the Apache Software Foundation.

An unauthenticated attacker with network access can exploit the flaw without user interaction to execute arbitrary commands on the affected system. Successful exploitation yields complete compromise of confidentiality, integrity, and availability, consistent with the CVSS 9.8 rating.

Advisories and patches referenced in the Apache mailing list threads and associated GitHub pull requests direct users to upgrade Airflow to 2.5.1 or later and the MySQL provider to 4.0.0 or later to remediate the issue.

The EPSS score has reached a peak of 0.7977 with a current value of 0.7629, indicating sustained exploitation interest following disclosure.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

A05:2025 Injection

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in a Command ('Command Injection') vulnerability in Apache Software Foundation Apache Airflow, Apache Software Foundation Apache Airflow MySQL Provider.This issue affects Apache Airflow: before 2.5.1; Apache Airflow MySQL Provider: before 4.0.0.

CWE(s)
CWE-77

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1059 Command and Scripting Interpreter Execution
Adversaries may abuse command and script interpreters to execute commands, scripts, or binaries.
attack.mitre.org →
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.001 PowerShell Execution
Adversaries may abuse PowerShell commands and scripts for execution.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.003 Windows Command Shell Execution
Adversaries may abuse the Windows command shell for execution.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.004 Unix Shell Execution
Adversaries may abuse Unix shell commands and scripts for execution.
attack.mitre.org →
T1059.008 Network Device CLI Execution
Adversaries may abuse scripting or built-in command line interpreters (CLI) on network devices to execute malicious command and payloads.
attack.mitre.org →
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2026-30898Same product: Apache Airflow
CVE-2024-45505Same vendor: Apache
CVE-2023-49898Same vendor: Apache
CVE-2023-32007Same vendor: Apache
CVE-2023-52291Same vendor: Apache
CVE-2024-29737Same vendor: Apache
CVE-2023-28935Same vendor: Apache
CVE-2021-45456Same vendor: Apache
CVE-2025-23196Same vendor: Apache
CVE-2025-60021Same vendor: Apache

Affected Assets

apache
airflow
≤ 2.5.1
apache
apache-airflow-providers-mysql
≤ 4.0.0

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

—

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

—

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

—

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V1.2.3
  • V1.2.5
  • V1.2.8
  • V1.2.9

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices directly require input validation and neutralization that prevent command injection.

DE.CM-09 partial match
prevents

Runtime monitoring of software and data can detect anomalous command execution resulting from injection.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Identifying recorded vulnerabilities enables remediation of command-injection flaws before exploitation.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

A.8.28 Secure coding mostly match
prevents

Secure coding standards require proper escaping and parameterization of commands, directly eliminating CWE-77.

A.8.29 Security testing in development and acceptance mostly match
finds

Security testing in development catches command-injection vulnerabilities before release.

A.8.25 Secure development life cycle partial match
prevents

Secure development life cycle mandates input validation and command construction practices that directly prevent command injection.

A.8.26 Application security requirements partial match
prevents

Application security requirements explicitly call for controls against injection flaws including command injection.

A.8.27 Secure system architecture and engineering principles partial match
prevents

Secure architecture principles reduce the attack surface but do not prescribe the specific neutralization techniques needed.

A.8.31 Separation of development, test and production environments none match
none

Environment separation limits the blast radius of an exploited command injection but does not prevent the flaw itself.

References