CVE-2023-5574 | Xorg-x11-server: use-after-free bug in damagedestroy

A use-after-free flaw was found in xorg-x11-server-Xvfb. This issue occurs in Xvfb with a very specific and legacy configuration (a multi-screen setup with multiple protocol screens, also known as Zaphod mode). If the pointer is warped from a screen 1 to a screen 0, a use-after-free issue may be triggered during shutdown or reset of the Xvfb server, allowing for possible escalation of privileges or denial of service.

Published: 2023-10-25 Last update: 2024-11-21 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2023-5574 is rated Low Risk (31.3/100): CVSS High severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.03%). 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-2023-5574

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 0.06% 0.03% -0.02%
2 2025-11-18 0.03% 0.06% +0.02%
3 2025-04-15 — 0.03% —

Full EPSS history (7 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2023-5574

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.0 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
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:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 1.0 5.9 [email protected]
7.0 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
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:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 1.0 5.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2023-5574

OS Trackers for CVE-2023-5574

vendor priority summary link
alpine — CVE-2023-5574: 2 source package rows (xorg-server, xwayland); 16 state rows across 6 repos (3.18-community, 3.19-community, 3.20-community, 3.21-community, 3.22-community, edge-community); fixed 12, open 4. https://security.alpinelinux.org/vuln/CVE-2023-5574
debian not yet assigned CVE-2023-5574 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (xorg-server), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): open 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2023-5574
redhat high — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2023-5574
suse high — https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2023-5574/
ubuntu low CVE-2023-5574 low priority: Ubuntu including 11 source packages (xorg, xorg-hwe-16.04, …), 132 status rows across 12 suites (bionic, focal, jammy, lunar, mantic, noble, oracular, plucky, questing, trusty, upstream, xenial): DNE 85, not-affected 18, ignored 13, deferred 9, needs-triage 7. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2023-5574

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2023-5574

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
x.org x_server >= 1.13.0 cpe:2.3:a:x.org:x_server:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
redhat enterprise_linux 7.0 cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2023-5574

cvelogic Threat Intelligence