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GraalvmApplication · Oracle

CVE-2023-21986

MEDIUM · 5.7 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-04-18
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
62/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
Vulnerability in the Oracle GraalVM Enterprise Edition product of Oracle Java SE (component: Native Image). Supported versions that are affected are Oracle GraalVM Enterprise Edition: 20.3.9, 21.3.5 and 22.3.1. Easily exploitable vulnerability allows unauthenticated attacker with logon to the infrastructure where Oracle GraalVM Enterprise Edition executes to compromise Oracle GraalVM Enterprise Edition. While the vulnerability is in Oracle GraalVM Enterprise Edition, attacks may significantly impact additional products (scope change). Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized update, insert or delete access to some of Oracle GraalVM Enterprise Edition accessible data and unauthorized ability to cause a partial denial of service (partial DOS) of Oracle GraalVM Enterprise Edition. CVSS 3.1 Base Score 5.7 (Integrity and Availability impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:N/I:L/A:L).

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

Vulnerability in Oracle GraalVM Enterprise Edition's Native Image component allows a local, unauthenticated attacker with infrastructure access to compromise the GraalVM installation. Successful exploitation enables unauthorized insert/update/delete access to some accessible data and partial denial of service, with potential scope expansion to impact additional products.

MitigationUpgrade Oracle GraalVM Enterprise Edition to a patched version beyond 22.3.1 and restrict physical/logical access to systems running GraalVM deployments.

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
GraalvmApplication
Affected:= 20.3.9= 21.3.5= 22.3.1

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

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

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 if Oracle GraalVM is installed
    Run 'java -version' and check the vendor string, or run 'graalvm --version' if the graalvm command is available. Look for 'GraalVM' in the output.
    Affected if The output shows GraalVM Enterprise Edition rather than standard Java or other JDK distributions
  2. Determine the installed GraalVM version
    Run 'graalvm --version' or check the 'GRAALVM_VERSION' environment variable if set. Alternatively, examine the installation directory name if accessible.
    Affected if The version shown is exactly 20.3.9, 21.3.5, or 22.3.1
  3. Check if Native Image component is present
    Run 'gu list' (GraalVM Updater) to list installed components, or check for the 'native-image' executable in the 'bin' directory of the GraalVM installation.
    Affected if Native Image is listed as an installed component or the native-image binary exists in the GraalVM bin directory
  4. Verify Native Image is configured and operational
    Run 'native-image --version' to confirm Native Image is executable and functional within the GraalVM environment.
    Affected if The command executes successfully and returns a version, indicating Native Image is enabled and operational

A system is affected if it runs Oracle GraalVM Enterprise Edition versions 20.3.9, 21.3.5, or 22.3.1 with the Native Image component installed and operational.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade Oracle GraalVM Enterprise Edition to a patched version beyond 22.3.1 and restrict physical/logical access to systems running GraalVM deployments.

Fix this in Graalvm Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,900
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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-2023-21986 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