dbcve.org
FreeBSDOperating system

CVE-2022-23088

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-02-15
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 12.3 / 13.0 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
The 802.11 beacon handling routine failed to validate the length of an IEEE 802.11s Mesh ID before copying it to a heap-allocated buffer. While a FreeBSD Wi-Fi client is in scanning mode (i.e., not associated with a SSID) a malicious beacon frame may overwrite kernel memory, leading to remote code execution.

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

Heap buffer overflow in FreeBSD's 802.11 beacon handling for IEEE 802.11s Mesh ID. The code fails to validate the mesh ID length before copying it to a heap buffer, allowing a malicious beacon frame to overwrite kernel memory when the Wi-Fi client is in scanning mode, leading to remote code execution.

MitigationApply the FreeBSD security patch for this vulnerability. Until patched, consider disabling Wi-Fi interfaces or avoiding untrusted networks, as exploitation occurs during scanning mode.

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
FreeBSDOperating system
Affected:< 12.3>= 12.4, < 13.0= 12.3= 13.0= 13.1

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
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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 FreeBSD version
    Run 'uname -a' or 'freebsd-version -k' to get the installed FreeBSD version
    Affected if The version is 12.0, 12.1, 12.2, 12.3, 12.4, 13.0, or 13.1 (versions prior to the patch for this CVE)
  2. Check for active Wi-Fi interfaces
    Run 'ifconfig -a' or 'sysctl net.wlan' to list wireless interfaces
    Affected if Any Wi-Fi interfaces (such as wlan0) are present and configured
  3. Verify if interfaces are in scanning or monitor mode
    Run 'ifconfig' to see interface status; look for 'scanning' state or monitor mode flags
    Affected if Wi-Fi interfaces are actively scanning or have recently performed scan operations
  4. Check for 802.11s mesh configuration
    Run 'ifconfig <wlan> mesh' to inspect mesh ID settings; check if mesh mode is enabled on any interface
    Affected if 802.11s mesh mode is configured or active on any wireless interface
  5. Review kernel module loading
    Check if wlan(4) and mesh modules are loaded via 'kldstat' or 'sysctl kern.modules'
    Affected if Wireless and mesh kernel modules are loaded, enabling the vulnerable code path

You are affected if you run an unpatched FreeBSD version (12.0-12.3, 12.4, 13.0, or 13.1) and have Wi-Fi interfaces that can perform scanning operations, particularly with 802.11s mesh mode enabled.

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 12.3 / 13.0 or later
Fixed in 12.313.0
Interim mitigation

Apply the FreeBSD security patch for this vulnerability. Until patched, consider disabling Wi-Fi interfaces or avoiding untrusted networks, as exploitation occurs during scanning mode.

Recommended fix High confidence

FreeBSD 13.1 or later stable release

  1. Upgrade FreeBSD to version 13.1 or later, which contains the fix for this vulnerability
  2. After upgrading, verify the system is running the new kernel with: uname -r
  3. Alternatively, apply the specific patch from FreeBSD security advisory if immediate upgrade is not feasible
  4. Reboot the system after applying the kernel update to load the fixed kernel
Caveat Kernel update requires system reboot; ensure compatibility of third-party kernel modules with the new FreeBSD version

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

Fix this in FreeBSD Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
17.0 hours of engineering $2,860
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,576.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

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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-2022-23088 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