dbcve.org
ColdfusionApplication · Adobe

CVE-2023-44350

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-11-17
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2021 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
High EPSS 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
Adobe ColdFusion versions 2023.5 (and earlier) and 2021.11 (and earlier) are affected by an Deserialization of Untrusted Data vulnerability that could result in Arbitrary code execution. Exploitation of this issue does not require user interaction.

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

Adobe ColdFusion versions 2023.5 and earlier and 2021.11 and earlier contain a deserialization vulnerability where untrusted data is deserialized without proper validation, leading to arbitrary code execution. This critical flaw can be exploited remotely without any user interaction.

MitigationUpdate ColdFusion to version 2023.6 or later and 2021.12 or later to apply the vendor patch. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict network access to ColdFusion administration interfaces.

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
ColdfusionApplication
Affected:< 2021= 2021= 2023

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. Determine installed ColdFusion version
    Access the ColdFusion Administrator interface and navigate to the System Information or Settings page to view the exact version number. Alternatively, check the version from the ColdFusion installation files or registry entries.
    Affected if The displayed version is 2023.5 or earlier, 2021.11 or earlier, or any version prior to 2021.
  2. Confirm ColdFusion product edition
    Verify whether the installation is ColdFusion 2021 or ColdFusion 2023, as both branches are affected up to their respective version limits.
    Affected if The edition is either ColdFusion 2021 or ColdFusion 2023.
  3. Check if the deserialization endpoint is accessible
    Identify whether the ColdFusion FlexBlazeDS or related deserialization endpoints (such as /flex2gateway/) are exposed to network access without authentication.
    Affected if The deserialization endpoint is reachable over the network without requiring authentication.

The environment is affected if ColdFusion 2021 version 11 or earlier, ColdFusion 2023 version 5 or earlier, or any version prior to 2021 is installed and the deserialization functionality is network-accessible.

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 2021 or later
Fixed in 2021
Interim mitigation

Update ColdFusion to version 2023.6 or later and 2021.12 or later to apply the vendor patch. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict network access to ColdFusion administration interfaces.

Recommended fix High confidence

ColdFusion 2021.12 (or later) for 2021 line; ColdFusion 2023.6 (or later) for 2023 line

  1. 1. Back up your current ColdFusion installation and all associated data
  2. 2. Download the latest ColdFusion 2021 or 2023 installer from the Adobe ColdFusion downloads page (helpx.adobe.com)
  3. 3. Stop the ColdFusion Application Server service
  4. 4. Install the update: For ColdFusion 2021, update to version 2021.12 or later; For ColdFusion 2023, update to version 2023.6 or later
  5. 5. After installation, restart the ColdFusion Application Server service
  6. 6. Verify the update was successful by checking the ColdFusion Administrator dashboard shows the new version number
  7. 7. Test critical applications to ensure functionality is intact
Caveat Review Adobe's release notes for version 2021.12 and 2023.6 for any configuration or compatibility changes before upgrading

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

Fix this in Coldfusion Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,080
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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-2023-44350 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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