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FreerdpApplication

CVE-2026-23532

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-01-19
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 3.21.0 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Public exploit 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
FreeRDP is a free implementation of the Remote Desktop Protocol. Prior to version 3.21.0, a client-side heap buffer overflow occurs in the FreeRDP client’s `gdi_SurfaceToSurface` path due to a mismatch between destination rectangle clamping and the actual copy size. A malicious server can trigger a client‑side heap buffer overflow, causing a crash (DoS) and potential heap corruption with code‑execution risk depending on allocator behavior and surrounding heap layout. Version 3.21.0 contains a patch for the issue.

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

FreeRDP client contains a heap buffer overflow vulnerability in the gdi_SurfaceToSurface function. The flaw stems from a mismatch between destination rectangle clamping logic and the actual memory copy size, allowing a malicious RDP server to write beyond allocated heap buffers on connected clients. This can cause denial of service via crash and potentially enable heap corruption leading to code execution.

MitigationUpgrade FreeRDP clients to version 3.21.0 or later. Until patched, restrict RDP connections to trusted servers only to avoid malicious server-side exploitation.

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
FreerdpApplication
Affected:< 3.21.0

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. Check if FreeRDP is installed
    Run 'which xfreerdp' or 'which freerdp' to locate the client binary, or use your system's package manager to list installed packages containing 'freerdp'
    Affected if FreeRDP client is not found on the system (not affected)
  2. Determine the installed FreeRDP version
    Run 'xfreerdp --version' or 'freerdp-version' to display the version number, or query your package manager (dpkg -l | grep freerdp or rpm -qi freerdp)
    Affected if No version output can be obtained (cannot confirm status)
  3. Compare your version against the affected range
    Parse the version number from step 2 and compare it to 3.21.0 using semantic versioning (for example, 3.0.0, 3.16.0, or 3.20.0 would be less than 3.21.0)
    Affected if The installed version is less than 3.21.0 (for example, 3.20.0, 3.0.0, 2.x.x)
  4. Identify FreeRDP library usage
    Check if applications link against libfreerdp by running 'ldconfig -p | grep freerdp' or examining specific applications that provide RDP client functionality
    Affected if Any application linking to a FreeRDP library version below 3.21.0 is potentially affected

You are affected if any installed FreeRDP client or library version is below 3.21.0 and you use it to connect to RDP servers.

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 3.21.0 or later
Fixed in 3.21.0
Interim mitigation

Upgrade FreeRDP clients to version 3.21.0 or later. Until patched, restrict RDP connections to trusted servers only to avoid malicious server-side exploitation.

Recommended fix High confidence

3.21.0

  1. Check current FreeRDP version using 'freerdp-version' or 'xfreerdp /version'
  2. Upgrade FreeRDP to version 3.21.0 or later using your system's package manager (e.g., 'apt-get update && apt-get install freerdp' for Debian/Ubuntu, or 'yum/dnf update freerdp' for RHEL/CentOS)
  3. If building from source, clone the FreeRDP repository and checkout version 3.21.0 or later, then compile and install
  4. Verify the installed version is 3.21.0 or higher using 'freerdp-version' or 'xfreerdp /version'
  5. Restart any running FreeRDP sessions to ensure the updated version is being used

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

Fix this in Freerdp Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,088.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
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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-2026-23532 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