# CVE-2023-38538: Use after free in WhatsApp Business for Android

> A race condition in WhatsApp's event subsystem causes a heap use-after-free, potentially leading to app crashes or unexpected control flow during calls.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.0 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L/E:U/RL:O/RC:C`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 4 Oct 2023
- **Updated:** 19 Sep 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-hr72-3p79-rchw

## What is CVE-2023-38538?

CVE-2023-38538 is a medium-severity use after free vulnerability in Facebook WhatsApp Business for Android, published on 4 Oct 2023. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

A race condition in an event subsystem led to a heap use-after-free issue in established audio/video calls that could have resulted in app termination or unexpected control flow with very low probability.

Weakness: CWE-362 (Concurrent Execution using Shared Resource with Improper Synchronization)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-38538?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Whatsapp Whatsapp.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-38538?

No fix has been published for CVE-2023-38538 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2023-38538 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-38538 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Facebook WhatsApp Business for Android

- [CVE-2019-3568](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-3568/): WhatsApp VOIP Stack Buffer Overflow (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2019-18426](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-18426/): WhatsApp Cross-Site Scripting (high 8.2, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-55177](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-55177/): Meta Platforms WhatsApp Incorrect Authorization (medium 5.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-36934](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-36934/): Integer overflow in WhatsApp Business for Android (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2021-24042](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-24042/): Memory corruption in WhatsApp Business for Android (critical 9.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-38538 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-38538 is a medium-severity use after free vulnerability in Facebook WhatsApp Business for Android, published on 4 Oct 2023. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-38538 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Facebook WhatsApp Business for Android. 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-2023-38538/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-38538/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-38538
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-38538
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-38538

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-38538/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.