CVE-2023-4322 – A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in r... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2023-4322?

CVE-2023-4322 has a CVSS score of 9.8 (CRITICAL). A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in radare2 versions prior to 5.9.0 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause denial of service. This affects users of the radare2 reverse engineering framework who process untrusted input files. The vulnerability is remotely exploitable with high impact.

📋 TL;DR

A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in radare2 versions prior to 5.9.0 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause denial of service. This affects users of the radare2 reverse engineering framework who process untrusted input files. The vulnerability is remotely exploitable with high impact.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

radare2

Versions: All versions prior to 5.9.0

Operating Systems: Linux, Windows, macOS, BSD

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: Vulnerability triggers when processing specially crafted input files through radare2's analysis functions.

📦 What is this software?

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Remote code execution leading to complete system compromise, data theft, or ransomware deployment.

🟠

Likely Case

Application crash (denial of service) or limited code execution in the context of the radare2 process.

🟢

If Mitigated

No impact if patched or if radare2 is not used to analyze untrusted files.

🌐 Internet-Facing: MEDIUM - radare2 is typically used offline, but could be exposed via web interfaces or automated analysis systems.

🏢 Internal Only: HIGH - if used internally to analyze malicious files, could lead to lateral movement within networks.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ⚠️ Yes

Weaponized: LIKELY

Unauthenticated Exploit: ⚠️ Yes

Complexity: LOW

Proof-of-concept available through huntr.dev bounty details. Exploitation requires feeding malicious input to radare2.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: 5.9.0 and later

Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/radareorg/radare2/commit/ba919adb74ac368bf76b150a00347ded78b572dd

Restart Required: No

Instructions:

1. Update radare2 to version 5.9.0 or later using your package manager. 2. For source installations: git clone https://github.com/radareorg/radare2 && cd radare2 && sys/install.sh

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Restrict file processing

all

Limit radare2 to trusted files only and avoid processing untrusted input.

Sandbox execution

linux

Run radare2 in a container or sandboxed environment to limit impact.

docker run --rm -v $(pwd):/work radareorg/radare2:latest r2 /work/file

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Disable or remove radare2 from production systems
Implement strict file validation and only allow trusted, verified files to be analyzed

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check radare2 version: r2 -v | grep version

Check Version:

r2 -v | grep version

Verify Fix Applied:

Confirm version is 5.9.0 or higher: r2 -v | grep -q '5.9.0\|5.9.\|5.1[0-9]' && echo 'Patched'

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Segmentation fault or crash logs from radare2 process
Unusual memory allocation patterns in system logs

Network Indicators:

Unexpected network connections originating from radare2 process

SIEM Query:

process_name:"r2" AND (event_type:"crash" OR memory_usage:"spike")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2023-4322

CVSS v3 Score: 9.8 (CRITICAL)

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

CWE: CWE-122

Published: August 14, 2023

Last Updated: November 21, 2024

🔗 References

https://github.com/radareorg/radare2/commit/ba919adb74ac368bf76b150a00347ded78b572dd Patch
https://huntr.dev/bounties/06e2484c-d6f1-4497-af67-26549be9fffd Exploit,Patch,Third Party Advisory
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/64KUV6OGEVQ75QOV35PUVVDOJTKSJHYN/ Mailing List,Third Party Advisory
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/SOZ6XCADVAPAIHMVSV3FUAN742BHXF55/ Mailing List,Third Party Advisory
https://github.com/radareorg/radare2/commit/ba919adb74ac368bf76b150a00347ded78b572dd Patch
https://huntr.dev/bounties/06e2484c-d6f1-4497-af67-26549be9fffd Exploit,Patch,Third Party Advisory
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/64KUV6OGEVQ75QOV35PUVVDOJTKSJHYN/ Mailing List,Third Party Advisory
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/SOZ6XCADVAPAIHMVSV3FUAN742BHXF55/ Mailing List,Third Party Advisory

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