CVE-2023-32076
In-Toto Project In-Toto ≤ 1.4.0
Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:NCVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.
Summary
CVE-2023-32076 is a medium-severity External Control of System or Configuration Setting (CWE-15) vulnerability in In-Toto Project In-Toto. Its CVSS base score is 5.5 (Medium).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Winlogon Helper DLL (T1547.004); ranked at the 14th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2023-0097
Vulnerability Data
in-toto is a framework to protect supply chain integrity. The in-toto configuration is read from various directories and allows users to configure the behavior of the framework. The files are from directories following the XDG base directory specification. In versions…
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1.4.0 and prior, among the files read is `.in_totorc` which is a hidden file in the directory in which in-toto is run. If an attacker controls the inputs to a supply chain step, they can mask their activities by also passing in an `.in_totorc` file that includes the necessary exclude patterns and settings. RC files are widely used in other systems and security issues have been discovered in their implementations as well. Maintainers found in their conversations with in-toto adopters that `in_totorc` is not their preferred way to configure in-toto. As none of the options supported in `in_totorc` is unique, and can be set elsewhere using API parameters or CLI arguments, the maintainers decided to drop support for `in_totorc`. in-toto's `user_settings` module has been dropped altogether in commit 3a21d84f40811b7d191fa7bd17265c1f99599afd. Users may also sandbox functionary code as a security measure.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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- 4 hardening rules · 2 OS baselines
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Likely Mitigating Controls AI
Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.
Provides fallback sources for configuration or settings when the primary is externally corrupted or controlled.
The policy and procedures establish internal controls and change management for system configuration settings, reducing the feasibility of external unauthorized modifications.
Baseline configuration under change control directly prevents unauthorized external modification of system or configuration settings.
Requires approval, documentation, and security impact review of all configuration changes, directly preventing unauthorized external control of system settings.
Impact analysis of configuration changes reduces the risk of deploying settings that permit unauthorized external control.
Restricting changes to system and configuration settings prevents external entities from controlling those settings without approval.
Establishing, implementing, approving deviations from, and monitoring configuration settings directly prevents external or unauthorized control of system settings.
The plan defines processes for identifying and managing configuration items, preventing external unauthorized control of system settings.
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.
Formal change and exception management catches externally driven configuration alterations.
Least-privilege access policies reduce unauthorized external modification of configuration values.
Hardened configuration baselines and change controls directly limit external manipulation of settings.
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.5.15 only requires that access control policies and rules be defined and documented; it does not itself enforce, implement or configure those rules to stop external control of system/configuration settings, so the weakness remains fully exploitable.
A.5.18 governs the provisioning, review, and revocation of authorized access rights; it has no bearing on whether a system or configuration setting can be externally controlled by a user (CWE-15).
Documented operating procedures define how configuration changes must be performed.
Use of privileged utility programs is controlled to prevent misuse of configuration tools.
Privileged access rights reduce the number of users who can alter configuration.
Hardening callouts derived
DISA STIG baselines are authored against specific weaknesses. Where this CVE cites a broad weakness class, the mapping is not asserted at that abstraction (owner ruling, 2026-09-25: grade only at Base and below), so no rule is shown here rather than a rule shown against the wrong grain.
- No fine-grained STIG row for CWE-610, a class-level weakness, and none of its children carries one either.