Azure Active Directory Client Secret detected in code

Rule Details

Cortex AppSec Rule ID	APPSEC_SECRET_153
Category	API Keys
Severity	HIGH
Framework	Git

Impact

The Azure Active Directory (AAD) Client Secret (now Microsoft Entra ID) is used by an application to prove its identity and request access tokens.

Exposure grants an attacker the ability to impersonate the application identity, inheriting all of its delegated permissions. This is a Critical Compromise that can lead to unauthorized resource access and potential full account takeover within the organization.

How to Fix

To remediate exposed Cloud & Infrastructure credentials:

1. Log in to your cloud provider's console.
2. Locate the identity or service account associated with the compromised credentials.
3. Revoke or deactivate the compromised keys immediately.
4. Generate a new set of credentials.
5. Update your environment variables, secrets manager, or pipelines with the new values.

Next, remove the secret from your codebase:

1. Locate the exposed secret in your codebase.
2. Replace the hardcoded value with a secure variable or reference.

Finally, clean your version control history:

1. Permanently remove the sensitive data from your version control history to ensure it cannot be retrieved.

Warning: Revoking infrastructure keys may cause immediate downtime. Ensure you have identified all dependent services before revoking.