CVE-2023-4156
published 2023-09-25CVE-2023-4156: A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin.c in the gawk package. This issue may lead to a crash and could be used to read sensitive information.
PriorityP424high7.1CVSS 3.1
AVLACLPRNUIRSUCHINAH
EPSS
0.43%
34.7th percentile
A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin.c in the gawk package. This issue may lead to a crash and could be used to read sensitive information.
Affected
9 ranges
| Vendor | Product | Version range | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| debian | gawk | < gawk 1:5.2.1-1 (bookworm) | gawk 1:5.2.1-1 (bookworm) |
| fedoraproject | fedora | — | — |
| gnu | gawk | < 5.1.1 | 5.1.1 |
| gnu | gawk | >= 0 < 1:5.2.1-1 | 1:5.2.1-1 |
| gnu | gawk | >= 0 < 1:5.2.1-1 | 1:5.2.1-1 |
| gnu | gawk | >= 0 < 1:5.2.1-1 | 1:5.2.1-1 |
| msrc | cbl2_gawk_5.1.1-1_on_cbl_mariner_2.0 | — | — |
| redhat | enterprise_linux | — | — |
| redhat | enterprise_linux | — | — |
CVSS provenance
nvdv3.17.1HIGHCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H
osv7.1HIGH
vendor_msrc7.1HIGH
vendor_redhat5.5MEDIUM
vendor_debian4.4MEDIUM
Stop checking back — get the weekly exploitation signal.
Every Monday: what got weaponized or added to CISA KEV in the last seven days — each CVE cross-linked to its PoC, Nuclei template, and detection rule. Free, one email a week, unsubscribe in one click.
OSV
CVE-2023-4156: A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin
osv·2023-09-25·CVSS 7.1
CVE-2023-4156 [HIGH] CVE-2023-4156: A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin
A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin.c in the gawk package. This issue may lead to a crash and could be used to read sensitive information.
GHSA
GHSA-8p8g-pp68-479w: A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin
ghsa_unreviewed·2023-09-25
CVE-2023-4156 [HIGH] CWE-125 GHSA-8p8g-pp68-479w: A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin
A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin.c in the gawk package. This issue may lead to a crash and could be used to read sensitive information.
Ubuntu
gawk vulnerability
vendor_ubuntu·2023-09-14
CVE-2023-4156 gawk vulnerability
Title: gawk vulnerability
Summary: gawk could be made to crash if it received specially crafted
input.
It was discovered that gawk could be made to read out of bounds when
processing certain inputs. If a user or an automated system were tricked
into opening a specially crafted input, an attacker could possibly use
this issue to cause a denial of service.
Instructions: In general, a standard system update will make all the necessary changes.
Microsoft
Heap out of bound read in builtin.c
vendor_msrc·2023-09-12·CVSS 7.1
CVE-2023-4156 [MEDIUM] CWE-125 Heap out of bound read in builtin.c
Heap out of bound read in builtin.c
FAQ: Is Azure Linux the only Microsoft product that includes this open-source library and is therefore potentially affected by this vulnerability?
One of the main benefits to our customers who choose to use the Azure Linux distro is the commitment to keep it up to date with the most recent and most secure versions of the open source libraries with which the distro is composed. Microsoft is committed to transparency in this work which is why we began publishing CSAF/VEX in October 2025. See this blog post for more information. If impact to additional products is identified, we will update the CVE to reflect this.
Mariner: Mariner
redhat: redhat
Customer Action Required: Yes
Remediation: CBL-Mariner Releases
Reference: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-
Red Hat
gawk: heap out of bound read in builtin.c
vendor_redhat·2023-06-19·CVSS 4.4
CVE-2023-4156 [MEDIUM] CWE-125 gawk: heap out of bound read in builtin.c
gawk: heap out of bound read in builtin.c
A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin.c in the gawk package. This issue may lead to a crash and could be used to read sensitive information.
A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin.c in the gawk package. This issue may lead to a crash and could be used to read sensitive information.
Statement: This issue is classified with a low severity primarily because this out-of-bounds read is only triggered during the parsing of a specially crafted file, requiring an attacker to convince a user to process this file with gawk. Additionally, the loss of confidentiality is limited and does not represent the real impact of this flaw. Furthermore, gawk does not handle privileged operations, meaning that exploitation is unlikely to lead
Debian
CVE-2023-4156: gawk - A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin.c in the gawk package. This ...
vendor_debian·2023·CVSS 4.4
CVE-2023-4156 [MEDIUM] CVE-2023-4156: gawk - A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin.c in the gawk package. This ...
A heap out-of-bounds read flaw was found in builtin.c in the gawk package. This issue may lead to a crash and could be used to read sensitive information.
Scope: local
bookworm: resolved (fixed in 1:5.2.1-1)
bullseye: open
forky: resolved (fixed in 1:5.2.1-1)
sid: resolved (fixed in 1:5.2.1-1)
trixie: resolved (fixed in 1:5.2.1-1)
No detection rules found.
No public exploits indexed.
No writeups or analysis indexed.
2023-09-25
Published