CVE-2023-5156 Explained : Impact and Mitigation

This CVE-2023-5156 concerns a vulnerability in the GNU C Library (glibc) that could lead to a denial of service (DoS) attack due to a memory leak in

getaddrinfo.c

.

Understanding CVE-2023-5156

This vulnerability was reported to Red Hat and was made public on September 25, 2023. It has a moderate severity rating and a CVSS base score of 7.5, indicating a high impact.

What is CVE-2023-5156?

The flaw in the glibc library, introduced by a recent fix for another CVE (CVE-2023-4806), may cause a memory leak leading to potential application crashes.

The Impact of CVE-2023-5156

With a CVSS base score of 7.5 and high availability impact, this vulnerability can result in a denial of service attack on affected systems.

Technical Details of CVE-2023-5156

This vulnerability arises due to a memory leak issue in

getaddrinfo.c

.

Vulnerability Description

The vulnerability in the GNU C Library (glibc) allows for a memory leak, potentially leading to application crashes.

Affected Systems and Versions

Affected Versions:

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 and 7
Fedora

Unaffected Versions:

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 and 9
glibc version 2.39

Exploitation Mechanism

The exploitation of this vulnerability could lead to unauthorized denial of service attacks on systems running the affected versions of glibc.

Mitigation and Prevention

It is crucial to take immediate steps to mitigate the impact of CVE-2023-5156 and prevent potential attacks.

Immediate Steps to Take

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 and 7 users should apply relevant patches as soon as they are available.
Monitor for any abnormal system behavior that could indicate exploitation of the vulnerability.

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly update and patch software to protect against known vulnerabilities like memory leaks in libraries.

Patching and Updates

Refer to the Red Hat Security Advisory for CVE-2023-5156 to access patches and updates for the affected versions of glibc.