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FusionApplication · VMware

CVE-2023-20870

MEDIUM · 6.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-04-25
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 13.0.2 / 17.0.2 or later.
See remediation →
62/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
VMware Workstation and Fusion contain an out-of-bounds read vulnerability that exists in the functionality for sharing host Bluetooth devices with the virtual machine.

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 · moderate confidence

VMware Workstation and Fusion contain an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in the functionality that shares host Bluetooth devices with the guest virtual machine. This memory safety flaw could allow a potentially malicious VM to read memory beyond allocated buffer boundaries, potentially exposing sensitive information from the host system or other VMs.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied security patch from VMware to resolve the vulnerability. Alternatively, disable the Bluetooth device sharing feature in VM settings if not required, or ensure only trusted VMs with verified configurations are permitted to run.

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
FusionApplication
Affected:>= 13.0.0, < 13.0.2
WorkstationApplication
Affected:>= 17.0.0, < 17.0.2

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/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. Identify VMware product and version
    Check the installed VMware Workstation or Fusion version - typically visible in the application About screen, or via command line (vmrun -v or checking the application bundle info)
    Affected if Version is 13.0.0, 13.0.1 for Fusion or 17.0.0, 17.0.1 for Workstation (versions prior to 13.0.2 and 17.0.2 respectively)
  2. Confirm Bluetooth device sharing is enabled
    Open VM settings and navigate to the Bluetooth configuration area, or inspect the VM configuration file (.vmx) for bluetooth.deviceType or similar Bluetooth passthrough settings
    Affected if Bluetooth device sharing from host to guest is enabled in the VM configuration
  3. Verify VMs with Bluetooth access
    Review all VM configuration files for any Bluetooth-related device settings, or check each VM settings pane under Hardware for Bluetooth presence
    Affected if Any virtual machine is configured to share or passthrough host Bluetooth devices

You are affected if you run VMware Fusion 13.0.0-13.0.1 or Workstation 17.0.0-17.0.1 AND have Bluetooth device sharing enabled for any guest virtual machine.

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 13.0.2 / 17.0.2 or later
Fixed in 13.0.217.0.2
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor-supplied security patch from VMware to resolve the vulnerability. Alternatively, disable the Bluetooth device sharing feature in VM settings if not required, or ensure only trusted VMs with verified configurations are permitted to run.

Recommended fix High confidence

VMware Fusion 13.0.2 or VMware Workstation 17.0.2

  1. Identify whether VMware Workstation or VMware Fusion is installed
  2. For VMware Workstation: Download version 17.0.2 from vmware.com
  3. For VMware Fusion: Download version 13.0.2 from vmware.com
  4. Power off all running virtual machines
  5. Upgrade to the downloaded fixed version using the VMware installer
  6. Restart the host machine after installation completes
  7. Verify the installation by checking the product version
Caveat Minor version upgrades typically maintain compatibility with existing virtual machines, but ensure guest tools are updated after upgrade

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

Fix this in Fusion Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,440
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,304.

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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-2023-20870 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