# CVE-2013-2238: Memory corruption in n/a

> Remote attackers can trigger buffer overflows in FreeSWITCH to cause crashes or execute arbitrary code.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.8 (`AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 30 Sep 2013
- **Updated:** 16 Sep 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-hhwm-5rv2-8r77, MGASA-2013-0279

## What is CVE-2013-2238?

CVE-2013-2238 is a medium-severity memory corruption vulnerability in n/a, published on 30 Sep 2013. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Multiple buffer overflows in the switch_perform_substitution function in switch_regex.c in FreeSWITCH 1.2 allow remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) and possibly execute arbitrary code via vectors related to the index and substituted variables.

Weakness: CWE-119 (Improper Restriction of Operations within the Bounds of a Memory Buffer)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2013-2238?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Freeswitch Freeswitch.

## How do I fix CVE-2013-2238?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2013-2238 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2013-2238 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2026-49841](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-49841/): FreeSWITCH: Pre-authentication heap buffer overflow in `mod_verto` HTTP POST body read (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2019-19492](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-19492/): Hardcoded credentials in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2026-49840](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-49840/): FreeSWITCH: Pre-authentication heap buffer overflow in libesl `Content-Length` parsing (critical 9.1)
- [CVE-2021-41145](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-41145/): FreeSWITCH susceptible to Denial of Service via SIP flooding (high 8.6)
- [CVE-2026-45771](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-45771/): Freeswitch Denial-of-Service in SIP PUBLISH Requests via XML Entity Expansion (high 7.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2013-2238 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2013-2238 is a medium-severity memory corruption vulnerability in n/a, published on 30 Sep 2013. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2013-2238 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: n/a. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2238/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2238/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2013-2238
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2013-2238
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2013-2238

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-2238/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.