CVE-2023-32098
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 · uneditedCompiler removal of buffer clearing in sli_se_sign_message in Silicon Labs Gecko Platform SDK v4.2.1 and earlier results in key material duplication to RAM.
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 confidenceThe compiler optimizes away a security-critical buffer clearing operation in the sli_se_sign_message function of Silicon Labs Gecko Platform SDK. This causes cryptographic key material to remain in RAM instead of being securely erased after signing operations complete, potentially exposing keys to memory disclosure attacks.
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<= 4.2.1CVSS 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
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the installed Gecko SDK versionLocate the SDK version file or manifest in your development environment. Common locations include the SDK release notes, version headers, or the manifest.xml file in the SDK installation directory. Compare this version number against the vulnerable range (4.2.1 and earlier).Affected if The installed SDK version is 4.2.1 or earlier.
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Locate the sli_se_sign_message function in your codebaseSearch your project source files for references to sli_se_sign_message, which is part of the Silicon Labs Secure Element (SE) API. Check header files in the Silicon Labs hardware abstraction layer.Affected if Your application references the sli_se_sign_message function from the Silicon Labs Gecko SDK.
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Verify cryptographic signing operations are performedReview your application code to determine if it performs cryptographic signing operations using the Silicon Labs Secure Engine API. Look for calls to signing-related functions that utilize the sli_se_sign_message code path.Affected if Your application performs cryptographic signing operations through the Silicon Labs Secure Engine.
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Confirm the build toolchain includes the affected compiler optimizationIdentify the compiler version and optimization settings used to build your firmware. The vulnerability occurs when the compiler applies aggressive optimization that removes the memset call used for secure buffer clearing.Affected if Your firmware was built with compiler optimization enabled that can remove memset calls to dead memory.
You are affected if your application uses Silicon Labs Gecko SDK version 4.2.1 or earlier and performs cryptographic signing operations through the sli_se_sign_message function.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 dataUpgrade to Silicon Labs Gecko Platform SDK v4.2.2 or later which contains the patch for this vulnerability, and verify that signing operations continue to function correctly after the upgrade.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-32098 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2023-32098 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- 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
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