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Memcached CVE-2023-46852

HIGH
Classic Buffer Overflow (CWE-120)
2023-10-27 cve@mitre.org
7.5
CVSS 3.1 · NVD
View

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Buffer copy size validation
MITRE ATT&CK

1 technique across 1 tactic: Execution

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Impact

CVSS score of 7.5 (HIGH). Attack characteristics: network attack vector, low complexity, no privileges required, no user interaction not required.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

A remote attacker could overflow a buffer to corrupt adjacent memory by sending crafted requests to the affected application. No authentication is required to exploit this vulnerability.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
Patch available 0.8% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAI

In Memcached before 1.6.22, a buffer overflow exists when processing multiget requests in proxy mode, if there are many spaces after the "get" substring. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.5), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. This Buffer Copy without Size Check vulnerability could allow attackers to overflow a buffer to corrupt adjacent memory.

RemediationAI

A vendor patch is available. Apply the latest security update as soon as possible. Always validate buffer sizes before copy operations. Use bounded functions (strncpy, snprintf). Enable compiler protections.

Affects your stack

Find out whether the stacks and servers you run are on an affected version.

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

This vulnerability is classified as Buffer Copy without Size Check (CWE-120), which allows attackers to overflow a buffer to corrupt adjacent memory. In Memcached before 1.6.22, a buffer overflow exists when processing multiget requests in proxy mode, if there are many spaces after the "get" substring. Affected products include: Memcached. Version information: before 1.6.22.

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  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

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Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY 7.5 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.

CVSS VectorNVD

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

DescriptionNVD

In Memcached before 1.6.22, a buffer overflow exists when processing multiget requests in proxy mode, if there are many spaces after the "get" substring.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.8%
Top 48% exploitable
Data Quality
3 sources
Confidence: Low

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.8%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Scheduled
Exploitation· derived
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable· derived
Yes
Human Impact· derived
Medium

Priority Score

39
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: +1
CVSS: +38
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

A buffer overflow occurs when a program writes more data to a memory buffer than it was allocated to hold, causing the excess data to spill into adjacent memory regions.

Affected Products (CPE)NVD

cpe:2.3:a:memcached:memcached:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
CVE-2016-8706 HIGH POC
8.1 Jan 06

An integer overflow in process_bin_sasl_auth function in Memcached, which is responsible for authentication commands of

CVE-2016-8704 CRITICAL POC
9.8 Jan 06

An integer overflow in the process_bin_append_prepend function in Memcached, which is responsible for processing multipl

CVE-2016-8705 CRITICAL POC
9.8 Jan 06

Multiple integer overflows in process_bin_update function in Memcached, which is responsible for processing multiple com

CVE-2022-26635 CRITICAL POC
9.8 Apr 05

PHP-Memcached v2.2.0 and below contains an improper NULL termination which allows attackers to execute CLRF injection. R

CVE-2017-9951 HIGH POC
7.5 Jul 17

The try_read_command function in memcached.c in memcached before 1.4.39 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of ser

CVE-2020-10931 HIGH POC
7.5 Mar 24

Memcached 1.6.x before 1.6.2 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (daemon crash) via a crafted binary pr

CVE-2019-11596 HIGH POC
7.5 Apr 29

In memcached before 1.5.14, a NULL pointer dereference was found in the "lru mode" and "lru temp_ttl" commands. Rated hi

CVE-2018-1000115 HIGH POC
7.5 Mar 05

Memcached version 1.5.5 contains an Insufficient Control of Network Message Volume (Network Amplification, CWE-406) vuln

CVE-2023-46853 CRITICAL
9.8 Oct 27

In Memcached before 1.6.22, an off-by-one error exists when processing proxy requests in proxy mode, if \n is used inste

CVE-2026-90698 MEDIUM POC
5.5 Sep 14

Out-of-bounds read in memcached versions 1.6.41-1.6.43 allows a remote, unauthenticated attacker to crash the ASCII auth

CVE-2026-47784 HIGH
8.1 May 20

Timing side-channel in memcached versions prior to 1.6.42 allows remote attackers to recover SASL authentication credent

CVE-2026-47783 HIGH
8.1 May 20

Observable timing discrepancy in memcached prior to version 1.6.42 enables remote attackers to enumerate valid SASL auth

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