CVE-2023-2253

A flaw was found in the `/v2/_catalog` endpoint in distribution/distribution, which accepts a parameter to control the maximum number of records returned (query string: `n`). This vulnerability allows a malicious user to submit an unreasonably large value for `n,` causing the allocation of a massive string array, possibly causing a denial of service through excessive use of memory.

Published: 2023-06-06 Last update: 2025-01-07 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2023-2253 is rated Low Risk (35.1/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.09%). Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2023-2253

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2025-11-21 0.32% 0.09% -0.23%
2 2025-11-18 0.07% 0.32% +0.26%
3 2025-03-30 — 0.07% —

Full EPSS history (12 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2023-2253

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
6.5 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 2.8 3.6 [email protected]
6.5 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 2.8 3.6 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2023-2253

GitHub Security Advisory for CVE-2023-2253

GHSA-hqxw-f8mx-cpmw · Severity: high · Ecosystem: go — distribution catalog API endpoint can lead to OOM via malicious user input

OS Trackers for CVE-2023-2253

vendor priority summary link
debian not yet assigned CVE-2023-2253 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (docker-registry), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2023-2253
redhat medium — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2023-2253
suse high CVE-2023-2253 severity important: SUSE including 7 source package names (2.8-5.1:distribution-registry-2.8.2-150400.9.21.1, 2.8:distribution-registry-2.8.2-150400.9.21.1, …), 12 product×package rows across 11 product lines (Container suse/registry, SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Containers 12, … (11 product lines)): Fixed 12. https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2023-2253/
ubuntu medium CVE-2023-2253 medium priority: Ubuntu including 1 source packages (docker-registry), 12 status rows across 12 suites (bionic, focal, jammy, kinetic, lunar, noble, oracular, plucky, questing, trusty, upstream, xenial): released 6, not-affected 4, ignored 2. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2023-2253

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2023-2253

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
redhat openshift_api_for_data_protection — cpe:2.3:a:redhat:openshift_api_for_data_protection:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
redhat openshift_container_platform 4.0 cpe:2.3:a:redhat:openshift_container_platform:4.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
redhat openshift_developer_tools_and_services — cpe:2.3:a:redhat:openshift_developer_tools_and_services:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2023-2253

cvelogic Threat Intelligence