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SambaApplication

CVE-2023-0922

MEDIUM · 5.9 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-04-03
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 4.16.10 / 4.17.7 or later.
See remediation →
68/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 Samba AD DC administration tool, when operating against a remote LDAP server, will by default send new or reset passwords over a signed-only connection.

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

The Samba AD DC administration tool (samba-tool) transmits new or reset passwords over LDAP connections that only provide signing (integrity protection) but not encryption (confidentiality). This means passwords can be intercepted in plaintext over the network when communicating with remote LDAP servers, as signing only verifies data integrity without concealing the content.

MitigationConfigure Samba to enforce LDAPS (LDAP over SSL/TLS) or StartTLS encryption for all password transmission operations, ensuring passwords are encrypted in transit rather than just signed.

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
SambaApplication
Affected:>= 4.0.0, < 4.16.10>= 4.17.0, < 4.17.7= 4.18.0

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

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

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 installed Samba version
    Run 'samba --version' or 'rpm -q samba' to obtain the installed Samba version
    Affected if The version falls within 4.0.0 to 4.16.9, 4.17.0 to 4.17.6, or equals 4.18.0
  2. Identify LDAP connection configuration
    Inspect the Samba configuration file (smb.conf) and look for 'ldap ssl' or 'tls' related settings in the [global] section or in the specific LDAP service parameters
    Affected if LDAP connections are configured without encryption (ldap ssl = off or not set to 'start tls' or 'yes' for LDAPS)
  3. Verify if samba-tool uses signed-only LDAP connections
    Run samba-tool with network tracing (e.g., tcpdump or Wireshark) while performing password operations (such as 'samba-tool user setpassword') to observe whether the LDAP session uses only signing without TLS encryption
    Affected if Password operations traverse the network as signed but unencrypted LDAP traffic (TCP port 389 without StartTLS) rather than LDAPS (port 636) or StartTLS
  4. Check for enforce LDAP signing settings
    Look for 'client ldap signing' and 'server ldap signing' parameters in smb.conf, and check whether 'seal' or 'encrypt' options are set for LDAP communications
    Affected if LDAP signing is enforced but encryption (seal/encrypt) is not enabled for LDAP sessions

The environment is affected if the installed Samba version is in the vulnerable range AND the LDAP configuration allows password transmission over connections that provide only signing integrity without TLS encryption.

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 4.16.10 / 4.17.7 or later
Fixed in 4.16.104.17.7
Interim mitigation

Configure Samba to enforce LDAPS (LDAP over SSL/TLS) or StartTLS encryption for all password transmission operations, ensuring passwords are encrypted in transit rather than just signed.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to Samba 4.16.10, 4.17.7, or 4.18.1 (or later releases in each respective branch)

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed Samba version using: samba --version
  2. 2. Determine which branch of Samba you are running (4.16.x, 4.17.x, or 4.18.0)
  3. 3. For Samba 4.16.x (versions < 4.16.10): Upgrade to Samba 4.16.10 or later
  4. 4. For Samba 4.17.x (versions < 4.17.7): Upgrade to Samba 4.17.7 or later
  5. 5. For Samba 4.18.0: Upgrade to Samba 4.18.1 or later
  6. 6. If using a distribution package manager (apt, yum, dnf, emerge), update from your distribution's Samba packages or add the official Samba repository
  7. 7. After upgrade, verify the new version is installed: samba --version
  8. 8. Test that the Samba AD DC administration tool functions correctly with the LDAP server
Caveat Standard upgrade considerations apply - review Samba release notes for any configuration or feature changes between versions

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

Fix this in Samba Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,770
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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-2023-0922 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