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Postgres Advanced ServerDatabase / datastore · Enterprisedb

CVE-2023-41117

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-12-12
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 11.21.32 / 12.16.20 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
An issue was discovered in EnterpriseDB Postgres Advanced Server (EPAS) before 11.21.32, 12.x before 12.16.20, 13.x before 13.12.16, 14.x before 14.9.0, and 15.x before 15.4.0. It contain packages, standalone packages, and functions that run SECURITY DEFINER but are inadequately secured against search_path attacks.

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

EnterpriseDB Postgres Advanced Server contains packages, standalone packages, and SECURITY DEFINER functions that do not properly set the search_path, allowing attackers to potentially escalate privileges by creating malicious objects in schemas that get resolved before the intended ones.

MitigationUpdate to patched versions (11.21.32, 12.16.20, 13.12.16, 14.9.0, or 15.4.0 or later), or for workaround, explicitly set search_path to trusted schemas in all SECURITY DEFINER functions.

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
Postgres Advanced ServerDatabase / datastore
Affected:< 11.21.32>= 12.0.0, < 12.16.20>= 13.0.0, < 13.12.17>= 14.0.0, < 14.9.0>= 15.0.0, < 15.4.0

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
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 installed Postgres Advanced Server version
    Run 'SELECT version();' or check the product documentation for your installation to determine the exact version number.
    Affected if The version falls into any of these ranges: < 11.21.32, >= 12.0.0 and < 12.16.20, >= 13.0.0 and < 13.12.17, >= 14.0.0 and < 14.9.0, or >= 15.0.0 and < 15.4.0.
  2. Find SECURITY DEFINER functions
    Query the pg_proc catalog: SELECT proname, pronamespace::regnamespace as schema, proiswindow, prosecdef FROM pg_proc WHERE prosecdef = true;
    Affected if Any functions with SECURITY DEFINER exist in the database.
  3. Check search_path configuration in SECURITY DEFINER functions
    For each SECURITY DEFINER function found, examine its definition: SELECT proname, prosrc FROM pg_proc WHERE prosecdef = true AND prosrc LIKE '%search_path%'; or inspect the function definition with \df+ in psql.
    Affected if SECURITY DEFINER functions do NOT explicitly set search_path to trusted schemas in their definition.
  4. Identify installed packages
    Query for packages: SELECT pkgname, pkgschema::regnamespace FROM edb$package; or check the pg_namespace catalog for schemas containing package objects.
    Affected if Packages exist and were installed with the default search_path not explicitly restricted.

You are affected if your installed version is within the vulnerable ranges AND you have SECURITY DEFINER functions or packages that do not explicitly set search_path to trusted schemas.

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 11.21.32 / 12.16.20 / 13.12.17 or later
Fixed in 11.21.3212.16.2013.12.17
Interim mitigation

Update to patched versions (11.21.32, 12.16.20, 13.12.16, 14.9.0, or 15.4.0 or later), or for workaround, explicitly set search_path to trusted schemas in all SECURITY DEFINER functions.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to the latest patch release in your current major version branch: 11.21.32+, 12.16.20+, 13.12.17+, or 14.9.0+

  1. 1. Identify the current installed version of EnterpriseDB Postgres Advanced Server using: psql --version or SELECT version();
  2. 2. Determine which major version branch you are currently on (11, 12, 13, or 14)
  3. 3. For version 11.x: upgrade to 11.21.32 or later
  4. 4. For version 12.x: upgrade to 12.16.20 or later
  5. 5. For version 13.x: upgrade to 13.12.17 or later
  6. 6. For version 14.x: upgrade to 14.9.0 or later
  7. 7. Download the appropriate fixed version from www.enterprisedb.com or your enterprise package repository
  8. 8. Follow EnterpriseDB's standard upgrade procedure for Postgres Advanced Server (pg_upgrade or logical migration recommended)
Caveat Standard Postgres Advanced Server upgrade risks apply - test thoroughly in staging before production deployment; review compatibility notes for your version branch

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

Fix this in Postgres Advanced Server Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
19.0 hours of engineering $3,380
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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-2023-41117 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