CVE-2023-28176 - Critical Memory Safety Bugs in Firefox 110 and Firefox ESR 102.8: Potential Arbitrary Code Execution

In recent news, Mozilla developers Timothy Nikkel, Andrew McCreight, and the Mozilla Fuzzing Team have reported a series of critical memory safety bugs [1] in Firefox 110 and Firefox ESR 102.8. The presence of these bugs shows evidence of memory corruption, which suggests that, with enough effort, some of these could be exploited to run arbitrary code [2]. This vulnerability has been assigned the identifier CVE-2023-28176 and affects Firefox versions below 111, Firefox ESR versions below 102.9, and Thunderbird versions below 102.9.

Code Snippet

Unfortunately, there is no specific code snippet to demonstrate this vulnerability, as the reported bugs pertain to memory safety issues present in multiple components of the affected versions. Nevertheless, potential exploit code could involve manipulating memory regions related to these vulnerabilities, which may lead to arbitrary code execution.

Here are the links to the original references for your convenience

1. Mozilla Foundation Security Advisory 2023-10 [3]: This official Mozilla advisory provides a summary of the reported memory safety bugs and their potential impact.

2. Mozilla bug tracker [4]: This resource provides information about the specific bugs reported by the researchers and their associated severity.

Exploit Details

Upon identifying these memory safety bugs, the Mozilla developers have considered them to be critical due to their potential for exploitation. Specifically, some of the discovered bugs demonstrate memory corruption, which is an indicator that, under certain conditions, may allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code on a targeted system.

Given the critical nature of these vulnerabilities, it is strongly recommended that users of affected Firefox, Firefox ESR, and Thunderbird versions promptly upgrade to the latest versions: Firefox 111, Firefox ESR 102.9, and Thunderbird 102.9. These new releases include patches that address the reported memory safety bugs [5].

For enterprise environments and other large-scale deployments, it may also be necessary to implement additional security measures, such as protecting system memory, monitoring for potential exploits, and enhancing application defenses.

To conclude, the discovery of these memory safety bugs in Firefox 110, Firefox ESR 102.8, and Thunderbird serves as a crucial reminder for users to keep their software up to date and prioritize installing security updates. By acting promptly and responsibly, users can minimize their risk and protect their systems from potential exploitation related to these vulnerabilities.

References

[1] https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/security/advisories/mfsa2023-10/

[2] https://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2023-28176

[3] https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/security/advisories/mfsa2023-10/

[4] https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/buglist.cgi?quicksearch=CVE-2023-28176

[5] https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/111/releasenotes/
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/102.9/releasenotes/
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/102.9/releasenotes/

Timeline

Published on: 06/02/2023 17:15:00 UTC
Last modified on: 06/09/2023 03:57:00 UTC