# CVE-2020-7469: Use after free in FreeBSD

> A use-after-free vulnerability in the FreeBSD ICMPv6 routing option handler allows attackers to potentially execute code or cause a denial of service.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 4 Jun 2021
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-cxxf-mg7m-vpfq

## What is CVE-2020-7469?

CVE-2020-7469 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Freebsd Freebsd, published on 4 Jun 2021. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In FreeBSD 12.2-STABLE before r367402, 11.4-STABLE before r368202, 12.2-RELEASE before p1, 12.1-RELEASE before p11 and 11.4-RELEASE before p5 the handler for a routing option caches a pointer into the packet buffer holding the ICMPv6 message. However, when processing subsequent options the packet buffer may be freed, rendering the cached pointer invalid. The network stack may later dereference the pointer, potentially triggering a use-after-free.

Weakness: CWE-416 (Use After Free)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-7469?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Freebsd Freebsd, Netapp Clustered Data Ontap.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-7469?

No fix has been published for CVE-2020-7469 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2020-7469 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-7469 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Freebsd Freebsd

- [CVE-2018-17160](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-17160/): Memory corruption in FreeBSD (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2014-3954](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2014-3954/): Memory corruption in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2006-4304](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2006-4304/): Memory corruption in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2006-0226](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2006-0226/): Integer overflow in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2004-0002](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2004-0002/): Denial of service in n/a (critical 10.0)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2020-7469 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-7469 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Freebsd Freebsd, published on 4 Jun 2021. 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-2020-7469 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Freebsd Freebsd. 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-2020-7469/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-7469/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-7469
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-7469
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-7469

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-7469/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.