# CVE-2013-6420: Memory corruption in n/a

> Remote attackers can execute arbitrary code or cause denial of service via crafted X.509 certificates due to improper timestamp parsing in PHP's OpenSSL extension.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`AV:N/AC:L/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:** 17 Dec 2013
- **Updated:** 6 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-m6pq-hhvx-694c, RHSA-2013:1813, RHSA-2013:1815, RHSA-2013:1824, RHSA-2013:1825, RHSA-2013:1826

## What is CVE-2013-6420?

CVE-2013-6420 is a high-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Apple Mac Os X, published on 17 Dec 2013. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

The asn1_time_to_time_t function in ext/openssl/openssl.c in PHP before 5.3.28, 5.4.x before 5.4.23, and 5.5.x before 5.5.7 does not properly parse (1) notBefore and (2) notAfter timestamps in X.509 certificates, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via a crafted certificate that is not properly handled by the openssl_x509_parse function.

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

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2013-6420?

It affects 3 products.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `php53` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-bcmath` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-cli` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-common` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-dba` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-debuginfo` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-devel` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-gd` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-imap` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-intl` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-ldap` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-mbstring` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-mysql` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-odbc` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-pdo` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-pgsql` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-process` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-pspell` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-snmp` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-soap` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-xml` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-xmlrpc` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-bcmath` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-cli` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-common` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-dba` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-debuginfo` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-devel` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-gd` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-imap` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-intl` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-ldap` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-mbstring` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-mysql` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-odbc` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-pdo` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-pgsql` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-process` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |
| `php53-pspell` | Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 0:5.3.3-22.el5_10 |

Products: Apple Mac Os X, Opensuse Opensuse, Php Php.

## How do I fix CVE-2013-6420?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2013-6420 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2013-6420 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Public exploit code:

- PHP - 'openssl_x509_parse()' Memory Corruption (exploitdb)

## Other vulnerabilities in Apple Mac Os X

- [CVE-2014-7169](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2014-7169/): GNU Bourne-Again Shell (Bash) Arbitrary Code Execution (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2014-6271](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2014-6271/): GNU Bourne-Again Shell (Bash) Arbitrary Code Execution (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2012-1823](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2012-1823/): PHP-CGI Query String Parameter (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2021-30713](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-30713/): Apple macOS Unspecified (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2019-8526](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-8526/): Apple macOS Use-After-Free (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2013-6420 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2013-6420 is a high-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Apple Mac Os X, published on 17 Dec 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-2013-6420 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Apple Mac Os X. 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-2013-6420/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6420/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2013-6420
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2013-6420
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2013-6420

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2013-6420/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.