Skip to content
Noroxi
NVD / CVE Program· CNA palo_alto

CVE-2023-3280: Cortex XDR Agent: Local Windows User Can Disable the Agent

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 22/100)

  • Public proof-of-concept code exists (GitHub); there is no record of exploitation in the wild.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.32% (FIRST EPSS).
  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it. A low-privileged account is enough. No user action is required. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
  • Fixed version: Palo Alto Networks Cortex XDR Agent 7.9.101-CE, 7.9.3, 8.0.2.

Low priority for now. Upgrade to Palo Alto Networks Cortex XDR Agent 7.9.101-CE, 7.9.3, 8.0.2 or later.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS

A problem with a protection mechanism in the Palo Alto Networks Cortex XDR agent on Windows devices allows a local user to disable the agent.

MediumCVSS 5.5 · v3.1—Proof of concept Fix available
Published
Sep 13, 2023
Updated
Jun 17, 2026
EPSS
0.3% · 25th percentile

Report tools

JSON

Action score

22

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
22 / 40 · 5.5 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
0 / 30 · 0.3%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
none
Automatable
no
Technical impact
partial

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

CNA vs NVD score

NVD
5.5
CNA · palo_alto
5.5
agree

The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.

Get told when this record changes

  • Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
  • Proof of concept exists, no weaponized module
  • A fix has been released

If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.

Follow CVE-2023-3280

When you'll hear from us

  • when it enters CISA KEV
  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
  • when the record is updated (including a fixed version)
  • when EPSS rises 20 points in a week

One daily email digest (06:00 UTC); connect a webhook for KEV listings and weaponized exploits instantly.

Your free account also gets you

Running WordPress? Scan your site free with WP Lens

  • Stack alerts: add the products and versions you run, get the new CVEs that affect them
  • Uptime monitoring: 1 site, instant email when it goes down
  • Add your domain: subdomains and takeover risk scanned every week (1 domain)
  • 10 scans an hour on the security tools (3 a day without an account), an API key and MCP
  • All your scans in one panel: findings, what changed in the last scan, a report per domain or per client (PDF, share link)
All free tools

Sign up with email · Have an account? Sign in

Free account, no card. Unfollow any time.

Don't want an account? Get "Exploited this week" by email every MondayDon't want an account? RSS feed for paloaltonetworks records

Running WordPress? Scan your site free with WP Lens

Is your version affected? Check it

Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.

We use this product, ask for help

Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

VendorProduct
paloaltonetworkscortex xdr agent
microsoftwindows

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • paloaltonetworks cortex xdr agent5.0 and later · up to 5.0.12.22203 inclusive
  • paloaltonetworks cortex xdr agent7.9.0 and later · before 7.9.3
  • paloaltonetworks cortex xdr agent7.9.0 and later · before 7.9.101
  • paloaltonetworks cortex xdr agent8.0.0 and later · before 8.0.2
  • paloaltonetworks cortex xdr agent7.5.102

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (palo_alto). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • Palo Alto Networks Cortex XDR Agent

    • 8.1not affected
    • 5.0, 7.5-CEaffected
    • 7.9 and later · before 7.9.3affectedfixed in 7.9.3
    • 7.9-CE and later · before 7.9.101-CEaffectedfixed in 7.9.101-CE
    • 8.0 and later · before 8.0.2affectedfixed in 8.0.2

Same product

paloaltonetworks: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2023-0002Cortex XDR Agent: Product Disruption by Local Windows User
    31Monitor
  • CVE-2022-0015Cortex XDR Agent: An Uncontrolled Search Path Element Leads to Local Privilege Escalation (PE) Vulnerability
    31Monitor
  • CVE-2021-3042Cortex XDR Agent: Improper Control of User-Controlled File Leads to Local Privilege Escalation
    31Monitor

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2022-0029Sep 14, 2022 · Cortex XDR Agent: Improper Link Resolution Vulnerability When Generating a Tech Support File
    22Monitor
  • ← EarlierCVE-2023-0001Feb 8, 2023 · Cortex XDR Agent: Cleartext Exposure of Agent Admin Password
    26Monitor
  • Later →CVE-2024-5905Jun 12, 2024 · Cortex XDR Agent: Local Windows User Can Disrupt Functionality of the Agent
    8Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

Product / packageFixed versionSource
Palo Alto Networks Cortex XDR Agent7.9.101-CEVendor (CNA)
Palo Alto Networks Cortex XDR Agent7.9.3Vendor (CNA)
Palo Alto Networks Cortex XDR Agent8.0.2Vendor (CNA)

Exploit status

Proof of concept available

A public proof of concept or detection signature exists. Exploit knowledge is out there; don't delay patching.

Evidence

  • Proof-of-concept repository on GitHub ×1

Noroxi does not host or link to exploit code. Metasploit module names and Nuclei template ids are shown (names, not code); Exploit-DB entries and PoC repositories are given as counts only.

Public exploit evidence
SourceKindDate
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:362025-01-28

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

  1. Published
  2. First PoC+502 d
  3. TodayOct 26, 2026+1139 d
EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it.
  • A low-privileged account is enough.
  • No user action is required.
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality
none
Integrity
none
Availability
high · the service can be disrupted
Attack vector
Local
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
None
Integrity impact
None
Availability impact
High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-755 · Improper Handling of Exceptional Conditions

CVSS vector

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

nvd-primary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.

Change log

  1. Fix✗ → ✓

For records you follow, these changes also arrive as notifications. →

References

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records