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CVE Record

CVE-2023-0215: Use-after-free following BIO_new_NDEF

The public API function BIO_new_NDEF is a helper function used for streaming ASN.1 data via a BIO. It is primarily used internally to OpenSSL to support the SMIME, CMS and PKCS7 streaming capabilities, but may also be called directly by end user applications. The function receives a BIO from the caller, prepends a new BIO_f_asn1 filter BIO onto the front of it to form a BIO chain, and then returns the new head of the BIO chain to the caller. Under certain conditions, for example if a CMS recipient public key is invalid, the new filter BIO is freed and the function returns a NULL result indicating a failure. However, in this case, the BIO chain is not properly cleaned up and the BIO passed by the caller still retains internal pointers to the previously freed filter BIO. If the caller then goes on to call BIO_pop() on the BIO then a use-after-free will occur. This will most likely result in a crash. This scenario occurs directly in the internal function B64_write_ASN1() which may cause BIO_new_NDEF() to be called and will subsequently call BIO_pop() on the BIO. This internal function is in turn called by the public API functions PEM_write_bio_ASN1_stream, PEM_write_bio_CMS_stream, PEM_write_bio_PKCS7_stream, SMIME_write_ASN1, SMIME_write_CMS and SMIME_write_PKCS7. Other public API functions that may be impacted by this include i2d_ASN1_bio_stream, BIO_new_CMS, BIO_new_PKCS7, i2d_CMS_bio_stream and i2d_PKCS7_bio_stream. The OpenSSL cms and smime command line applications are similarly affected.

HighCVSS 7.5Not KEV-listedUpdated
Glexia's TakeAutomated analysishigh

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

CVE-2023-0215 is an OpenSSL memory-safety flaw that can crash affected software when specific ASN.1 streaming paths fail. The main business risk is service disruption, not data theft, based on the provided CVSS and description.

Executive priority

Treat as a high-priority availability fix for systems that process signed, encrypted, or structured message content with OpenSSL. It is less urgent for systems with no CMS, S/MIME, PKCS7, or exposed parsing workflow.

Technical view

BIO_new_NDEF can leave a caller-provided BIO chain holding pointers to a freed BIO_f_asn1 filter after failure. Later BIO_pop use can trigger CWE-416 use-after-free. OpenSSL CMS, S/MIME, PKCS7 streaming APIs and related command-line tools are affected.

Likely exposure

Exposure is most likely where OpenSSL 3.0.0, 1.1.1, or 1.0.2 branches are used for CMS, S/MIME, PKCS7, ASN.1 streaming, or vendor appliances embedding affected OpenSSL code.

Exploitation context

The source bundle marks KEV as false and provides no evidence of active exploitation. The described likely result is a crash causing availability impact. No confidentiality or integrity impact is asserted in the supplied CVSS vector.

Researcher notes

The advisory ties impact to error handling after BIO_new_NDEF prepends BIO_f_asn1 and later returns NULL without fully cleaning the chain. Validate exposure by code path and library version, not by OpenSSL presence alone.

Mitigation direction

  • Upgrade OpenSSL to vendor-fixed releases referenced by the OpenSSL advisory.
  • Apply downstream vendor updates for appliances and distributions using bundled OpenSSL.
  • Prioritize internet-facing or email-processing systems using CMS, S/MIME, or PKCS7.
  • Check vendor guidance for unsupported or premium OpenSSL 1.0.2 deployments.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory OpenSSL versions in operating systems, containers, appliances, and statically linked applications.
  • Identify applications calling CMS, S/MIME, PKCS7, ASN.1 streaming, or BIO_new_NDEF APIs.
  • Confirm patched versions or vendor advisories cover each exposed product.
  • Review crash telemetry for affected OpenSSL CMS or S/MIME processing paths.
Prepared
Confidence
high
Sources
7

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

Potential ATT&CK relevance

Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context

These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.

ATT&CK lookup starting points

Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.

cwe · low confidence lookup

CWE-416: Exact CWE lookup

Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.

Open ATT&CK lookup
cve · low confidence lookup

CVE-2023-0215 mapping review

Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.

Open ATT&CK lookup
Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
High
CVSS
7.5 (3.1)
Known Exploited
No
Published

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

Official CVE source material

CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5

These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.

1CVSS vectors
0Timeline events
0ADP providers
10Source links

CVSS vector scores

1 official score

We collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.

ScoreVersionSeverityVectorExploitImpactSource
7.5CVSS 3.1HighCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H3.93.6Primary CVE score

Vulnerability scoring details

Base CVSS 3.1 score

7.5High
CVSS 3.1 vector shape for CVE-2023-0215Attack VectorAttack ComplexityPrivileges RequiredUser InteractionScopeConfidentiality ImpactIntegrity ImpactAvailability Impact

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

Attack Vector
NetworkAdjacentLocalPhysical
Attack Complexity
LowHigh
Privileges Required
NoneLowHigh
User Interaction
NoneRequired
Scope
ChangedUnchanged
Confidentiality Impact
HighLowNone
Integrity Impact
HighLowNone
Availability Impact
HighLowNone
Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
OpenSSLOpenSSL3.0.0, 1.1.1, 1.0.2unaffected
Weakness

CWE details

CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.

CWE-416 · source CWE mapping

Use After Free

Use After Free represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.