dbcve.org
FirefoxWeb browser · Mozilla

CVE-2013-1686

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2013-06-26
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 21.0 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 mozilla::ResetDir function in Mozilla Firefox before 22.0, Firefox ESR 17.x before 17.0.7, Thunderbird before 17.0.7, and Thunderbird ESR 17.x before 17.0.7 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (heap memory corruption) via unspecified vectors.

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 the mozilla::ResetDir function allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause heap memory corruption via unspecified vectors in Mozilla Firefox before 22.0, Firefox ESR 17.x before 17.0.7, Thunderbird before 17.0.7, and Thunderbird ESR 17.x before 17.0.7.

MitigationUpgrade to Firefox 22.0 or later, Firefox ESR 17.0.7 or later, Thunderbird 17.0.7 or later, or Thunderbird ESR 17.0.7 or later to remediate this vulnerability.

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:<= 21.0= 19.0= 19.0.1= 19.0.2= 20.0= 20.0.1= 17.0= 17.0.1= 17.0.2= 17.0.3= 17.0.4= 17.0.5
ThunderbirdApplication
Affected:<= 17.0.6= 17.0= 17.0.1= 17.0.2= 17.0.3= 17.0.4= 17.0.5
Thunderbird EsrApplication
Affected:= 17.0= 17.0.1= 17.0.2= 17.0.3= 17.0.4= 17.0.5= 17.0.6

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
Low
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:L/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. Check Firefox version on Windows
    Open Firefox, click the menu button (three horizontal lines), select Help, then About Firefox. The version number is displayed in the window that opens.
    Affected if The version listed is 21.0 or lower, or matches 19.0, 19.0.1, 19.0.2, 20.0, 20.0.1, 17.0, 17.0.1, 17.0.2, 17.0.3, 17.0.4, or 17.0.5 (any Firefox version below 22.0 is affected)
  2. Check Firefox version on macOS or Linux
    Open Terminal and run: firefox --version or open Firefox, go to Firefox > About Firefox (or Help > About Firefox on Linux).
    Affected if The version displayed is 21.0 or lower, or matches any of the affected versions listed (19.x, 20.x, or 17.x series before 22.0)
  3. Check Thunderbird version on Windows
    Open Thunderbird, click the menu button, select Help, then About Thunderbird. The version number is displayed in the window that opens.
    Affected if The version listed is 17.0.6 or lower, or matches 17.0, 17.0.1, 17.0.2, 17.0.3, 17.0.4, or 17.0.5 (any Thunderbird version below 17.0.7 is affected)
  4. Check Thunderbird version on macOS or Linux
    Open Terminal and run: thunderbird --version or open Thunderbird, go to Thunderbird > About Thunderbird (or Help > About Thunderbird on Linux).
    Affected if The version displayed is 17.0.6 or lower, or matches any of the affected versions listed (17.0 through 17.0.6 series)
  5. Confirm product is Firefox ESR or Thunderbird ESR
    In the About dialog/window, look for 'ESR' after the version number. ESR versions are the Extended Support Release variants.
    Affected if The product is Firefox ESR 17.x (any version before 17.0.7) or Thunderbird ESR 17.x (any version before 17.0.7)

A user is affected if their installed Firefox version is below 22.0, or their Firefox ESR/Thunderbird/Thunderbird ESR version is below 17.0.7, specifically if it matches one of the affected versions listed in the CVE.

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 21.0
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to Firefox 22.0 or later, Firefox ESR 17.0.7 or later, Thunderbird 17.0.7 or later, or Thunderbird ESR 17.0.7 or later to remediate this vulnerability.

Recommended fix High confidence

Firefox 22.0+ (or Firefox ESR 17.0.7+); Thunderbird 17.0.7+ (or Thunderbird ESR 17.0.7+)

  1. Backup your profile data (bookmarks, passwords, extensions) located in your profile directory
  2. Close all Firefox or Thunderbird instances
  3. Download the appropriate fixed version for your product: Firefox 22.0 or later, Firefox ESR 17.0.7 or later, Thunderbird 17.0.7 or later
  4. Install the new version by running the downloaded installer
  5. After installation, launch the application and verify it starts without errors
  6. Verify the version installed matches a fixed release (Help > About Firefox/Thunderbird)
  7. Re-install any compatible add-ons if needed after upgrade
Caveat Major version upgrades may cause incompatibility with older extensions/add-ons; test in non-production environment first if you rely on specific extensions

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

Fix this in Firefox Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
13.0 hours of engineering $2,280
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,648.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2013-1686 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2013-1686 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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