# CVE-2023-45233: Infinite loop in EDK II Network Package

> An attacker can cause a denial of service in EDK II UEFI firmware by sending a crafted IPv6 packet with a specific PadN option.

- **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:** Yes
- **Published:** 16 Jan 2024
- **Updated:** 4 Nov 2025
- **Also known as:** AZL-38842, AZL-39355, AZL-39538, BELL-CVE-2023-45233, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-45233, GHSA-p9h6-p7cr-7842, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-45233

## What is CVE-2023-45233?

CVE-2023-45233 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in TianoCore edk2, published on 16 Jan 2024. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

EDK2's Network Package is susceptible to an infinite lop vulnerability when parsing a PadN option in the Destination Options header of IPv6. This
 vulnerability can be exploited by an attacker to gain unauthorized 
access and potentially lead to a loss of Availability.

Weakness: CWE-835 (Loop with Unreachable Exit Condition)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-45233?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Tianocore Edk2.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-45233?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2023-45233 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2023-45233 exists.

## Other vulnerabilities in TianoCore edk2

- [CVE-2023-45230](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-45230/): Buffer Overflow in EDK II Network Package (high 8.3)
- [CVE-2023-45234](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-45234/): Buffer Overflow in EDK II Network Package (high 8.3)
- [CVE-2023-45235](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-45235/): Buffer Overflow in EDK II Network Package (high 8.3)
- [CVE-2021-28210](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-28210/): Denial of service in EDK II (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2019-14584](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-14584/): Null dereference in Tianocore EDK2 (high 7.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-45233 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-45233 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in TianoCore edk2, published on 16 Jan 2024. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2023-45233 exists.

Affected product: TianoCore edk2. 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-2023-45233/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-45233/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-45233
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-45233
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-45233

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-45233/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.