CVE-2026-23883 Heap-use-after-free in update_pointer_new
A malicious RDP server can trigger a use-after-free in FreeRDP clients, causing crashes or potential code execution.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Not needed
- Attackable
- Over the internet
- Victim action needed
- Not needed
- Fix
- Available
What is CVE-2026-23883?
CVE-2026-23883 is a high-severity use after free vulnerability in Freerdp Freerdp, published on 19 Jan 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Official description
FreeRDP is a free implementation of the Remote Desktop Protocol. Prior to version 3.21.0, `xf_Pointer_New` frees `cursorPixels` on failure, then `pointer_free` calls `xf_Pointer_Free` and frees it again, triggering ASan UAF. A malicious server can trigger a client‑side use after free, causing a crash (DoS) and potential heap corruption with code‑execution risk depending on allocator behavior and surrounding heap layout. Version 3.21.0 contains a patch for the issue.
Weakness: CWE-416
Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-23883?
It affects 1 product.
Products include Freerdp Freerdp.
How do I fix CVE-2026-23883?
Upgrade to a fixed version.
Upgrade to the fixed version. These bugs are found with fuzzing and sanitisers and avoided by memory-safe languages. More about Use after free.
Is CVE-2026-23883 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2026-23883 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Other vulnerabilities in Freerdp Freerdp
- CVE-2021-37594 Other in n/a
- CVE-2021-37595 Other in n/a
- CVE-2026-67305 FreeRDP Windows Client before 3.29.0 Heap Buffer Overflow via Cliprdr
- CVE-2026-66402 FreeRDP before 3.29.0 TLS Certificate Identity Validation Bypass
- CVE-2026-67289 FreeRDP before 3.29.0 HTTP Proxy Request Injection via Redirection
Sources
Also known as DEBIAN-CVE-2026-23883, GHSA-qcrr-85qx-4p6x, MINI-7f52-x697-rjpx, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-23883.