CVE-2023-2663 Stack overflow in Xpdf 4.04 due to object loop in PDF page label tree

Low 2.9 Published 11 May 2023 Updated 24 Jan 2025

An attacker can cause a stack overflow and crash the application by providing a PDF with a malicious object loop in the page label tree.

Exploited in the wild: Not known
Login needed: Not needed
Attackable: Local or same network only
Victim action needed: Not needed
Fix: Available

What is CVE-2023-2663?

CVE-2023-2663 is a low-severity denial of service vulnerability in Xpdfreader Xpdf, published on 11 May 2023. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

Official description

In Xpdf 4.04 (and earlier), a PDF object loop in the page label tree leads to infinite recursion and a stack overflow.

Weakness: CWE-674

Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-2663?

It affects 1 product.

Products include Xpdfreader Xpdf.

How do I fix CVE-2023-2663?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

Upgrade, then put limits on request size, rate and nesting depth so one client cannot exhaust the service. More about Denial of service.

Is CVE-2023-2663 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-2663 in the wild and no public exploit code.

All Xpdfreader Xpdf vulnerabilities

Sources

Also known as CVE-2023-31554, GHSA-8wrw-hcvf-r5f8, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-2663.