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FirefoxWeb browser · Mozilla

CVE-2013-0787

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2013-03-11
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 19.0.1 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Use-after-free vulnerability in the nsEditor::IsPreformatted function in editor/libeditor/base/nsEditor.cpp in Mozilla Firefox before 19.0.2, Firefox ESR 17.x before 17.0.4, Thunderbird before 17.0.4, Thunderbird ESR 17.x before 17.0.4, and SeaMonkey before 2.16.1 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via vectors involving an execCommand call.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Use-after-free vulnerability in Mozilla Firefox, Thunderbird, SeaMonkey's editor component (nsEditor::IsPreformatted function) allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via crafted execCommand calls. The vulnerability stems from improper memory management when handling editor operations.

MitigationUpdate affected products to Firefox 19.0.2/ESR 17.0.4, Thunderbird 17.0.4/ESR 17.0.4, or SeaMonkey 2.16.1 or later. This is a client-side vulnerability requiring end-user software updates.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
FirefoxWeb browser
Affected:<= 19.0.1= 19.0= 17.0= 17.0.1= 17.0.2= 17.0.3
ThunderbirdApplication
Affected:<= 17.0.3= 17.0= 17.0.1= 17.0.2
Thunderbird EsrApplication
Affected:= 17.0= 17.0.1= 17.0.2= 17.0.3
SeamonkeyApplication
Affected:<= 2.16= 2.16

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify installed Mozilla product
    Check the product name: Firefox, Thunderbird, or SeaMonkey. In Firefox: about:config or Help > About. In Thunderbird: Help > About. In SeaMonkey: Help > About.
    Affected if Product is Firefox, Thunderbird, or SeaMonkey.
  2. Check installed version number
    Open Help > About (or navigate to about:config in Firefox) and note the exact version number displayed.
    Affected if Version matches: Firefox 19.0, 19.0.1, or 17.0.x (17.0 through 17.0.3); Thunderbird 17.0.x (17.0 through 17.0.3); Thunderbird ESR 17.0.x; SeaMonkey 2.16 or below.
  3. Determine if editor component is accessible
    Check if the browser or mail client has JavaScript-enabled content editing capabilities. This includes visiting a webpage with contenteditable elements or composing HTML emails in Thunderbird.
    Affected if The execCommand API is available for use in JavaScript contexts within the application.
  4. Verify JavaScript execution context
    Confirm the application runs JavaScript in mail compose windows or web content. This is enabled by default in Firefox and Thunderbird for web content and HTML messages.
    Affected if JavaScript is enabled in content areas where rich text editing could be performed.

You are affected if you run Firefox 19.0/19.0.1 or Firefox 17.0.x, Thunderbird 17.0.x (including ESR), or SeaMonkey 2.16 or below, and you use or can trigger JavaScript-based rich text editing (execCommand) in web pages or HTML emails.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 19.0.1
Interim mitigation

Update affected products to Firefox 19.0.2/ESR 17.0.4, Thunderbird 17.0.4/ESR 17.0.4, or SeaMonkey 2.16.1 or later. This is a client-side vulnerability requiring end-user software updates.

Recommended fix High confidence

Firefox 19.0.2+ (or Firefox ESR 17.0.4+); Thunderbird 17.0.4+; Thunderbird ESR 17.0.4+; SeaMonkey 2.16.1+

  1. Check the currently installed version of Firefox, Thunderbird, Thunderbird ESR, or SeaMonkey
  2. For Firefox: Upgrade to version 19.0.2 or later (including Firefox ESR 17.0.4 or later)
  3. For Thunderbird: Upgrade to version 17.0.4 or later
  4. For Thunderbird ESR: Upgrade to version 17.0.4 or later
  5. For SeaMonkey: Upgrade to version 2.16.1 or later
  6. Restart the application after upgrading
Caveat Older extensions or add-ons may not be compatible with newer versions; test in non-production environment first if applicable

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Firefox Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2013-0787 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data