# CVE-2023-48706: Vim has heap-use-after-free at /src/charset.c:1770:12 in skipwhite

> A heap-use-after-free in Vim allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a crash via a crafted substitution command.

- **Severity:** Low 3.6 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:L`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 22 Nov 2023
- **Updated:** 23 Jun 2026
- **Also known as:** ALPINE-CVE-2023-48706, AZL-32047, BELL-CVE-2023-48706, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-48706, ECHO-b725-ea57-16d2, GHSA-c8qm-x72m-q53q, OESA-2023-1901, OESA-2023-1902, OESA-2023-1903, ROOT-OS-ALPINE-318-CVE-2023-48706, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-48706

## What is CVE-2023-48706?

CVE-2023-48706 is a low-severity use after free vulnerability in Fedoraproject Fedora, published on 22 Nov 2023. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

Vim is a UNIX editor that, prior to version 9.0.2121, has a heap-use-after-free vulnerability. When executing a `:s` command for the very first time and using a sub-replace-special atom inside the substitution part, it is possible that the recursive `:s` call causes free-ing of memory which may later then be accessed by the initial `:s` command. The user must intentionally execute the payload and the whole process is a bit tricky to do since it seems to work only reliably for the very first :s command. It may also cause a crash of Vim. Version 9.0.2121 contains a fix for this issue.

Weakness: CWE-416 (Use After Free)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-48706?

It affects 4 products.


Products: Fedoraproject Fedora, Neovim Neovim, Netapp Hci Compute Node, Vim Vim.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-48706?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2023-48706 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2023-48706 exists.

## Other vulnerabilities in Fedoraproject Fedora

- [CVE-2024-4577](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4577/): PHP-CGI OS Command Injection (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2021-39226](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-39226/): Grafana Authentication Bypass (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2019-5544](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-5544/): VMware ESXi and Horizon DaaS OpenSLP Heap-Based Buffer Overflow (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2024-4947](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4947/): Google Chromium V8 Type Confusion (critical 9.6, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2024-4671](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-4671/): Google Chromium Visuals Use-After-Free (critical 9.6, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-48706 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-48706 is a low-severity use after free vulnerability in Fedoraproject Fedora, published on 22 Nov 2023. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2023-48706 exists.

Affected product: Fedoraproject Fedora. 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-2023-48706/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-48706/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-48706
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-48706
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-48706

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-48706/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.