CVE-2023-25588Public exploit

Local application crash via uninitialized Mach-O symbol pointer

Published Sep 14, 2023 · Updated Feb 13, 2025

Use of an uninitialized pointer in GNU Binutils allows local users to crash a Mach-O-processing application with a crafted executable. bfd_mach_o_get_synthetic_symtab allocates synthetic asymbol entries without initializing the_bfd, which compare_symbols later dereferences. The path exists only in builds configured for Mach-O support; Red Hat limits affected RHEL builds to s390x releases 6, 7, and 8, and the consequence is a process crash.

CVSS severity4.7
Medium
EPSS probability0.38%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Use of an uninitialized pointer in GNU Binutils allows local users to crash a Mach-O-processing application with a crafted executable. bfd_mach_o_get_synthetic_symtab allocates synthetic asymbol entries without initializing the_bfd, which compare_symbols later dereferences. The path exists only in builds configured for Mach-O support; Red Hat limits affected RHEL builds to s390x releases 6, 7, and 8, and the consequence is a process crash.

The record

CVE
CVE-2023-25588
Published
Sep 14, 2023
Updated
Feb 13, 2025
Vendor
Red Hat
Product
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
Classifications
CWE-457, CWE-908, T1499.004
Attack vector
local
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Sep 14, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Feb 13, 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?

Affected versions are unavailable in this record. Check the vendor advisory for version and patch details.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

Red Hat · Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6Affected versions are unavailable in this record.
Red Hat · Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8Affected versions are unavailable in this record.
Red Hat · Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7Affected versions are unavailable in this record.
The GnuPG Project · GNU BinutilsAffected versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

4.7Red HatCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
5.5NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

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.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 9, 2026Sep 15, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 15, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-457Use of Uninitialized Variable
CWE-908Use of Uninitialized Resource
T1499.004Endpoint Denial of Service: Application or System Exploitation

Public exploit references

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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