Crash via SpellFileMissing buffer deletion
Published Sep 29, 2022 · Updated May 20, 2025
Use-after-free in Vim before 9.0.0614 allows local users to crash the editor through a crafted SpellFileMissing autocommand. During spell_load_lang, the autocommand can wipe the current buffer, freeing the lang string while spell loading continues to use it. Execution requires user interaction with locally controlled Vim configuration or script content; the demonstrated consequence is a Vim process crash.
Summary
What happened
Use-after-free in Vim before 9.0.0614 allows local users to crash the editor through a crafted SpellFileMissing autocommand. During spell_load_lang, the autocommand can wipe the current buffer, freeing the lang string while spell loading continues to use it. Execution requires user interaction with locally controlled Vim configuration or script content; the demonstrated consequence is a Vim process crash.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2022-3352
- Published
- Sep 29, 2022
- Updated
- May 20, 2025
- Vendor
- Vim
- Product
- Vim
- Classifications
- CWE-416
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 29, 2022CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- May 20, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=unspecified <9.0.0614
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
- Upstream SpellFileMissing buffer-wipe regression testproof of concept · demonstrated
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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