Cyber Resilience

CVE-2023-5869

Memory Safety in Postgresql 11.0 – 11.22

Memory Safety
Published
10 December 2023
Modified
04 November 2025
Patch / advisory
View advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 8.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.043 90th percentile
Risk Priority 70 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2023-5869 is a high-severity Integer Overflow or Wraparound (CWE-190) vulnerability in Postgresql Postgresql. Its CVSS base score is 8.8 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked in the top 10% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

A flaw was found in PostgreSQL that allows authenticated database users to execute arbitrary code through missing overflow checks during SQL array value modification. This issue exists due to an integer overflow during array modification where a remote user can…

more

trigger the overflow by providing specially crafted data. This enables the execution of arbitrary code on the target system, allowing users to write arbitrary bytes to memory and extensively read the server's memory.

CWE(s)
CWE-190

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to elevate privileges.
attack.mitre.org →
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
attack.mitre.org →
T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution Execution
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in client applications to execute code.
attack.mitre.org →
T1210 Exploitation of Remote Services Lateral Movement
Adversaries may exploit remote services to gain unauthorized access to internal systems once inside of a network.
attack.mitre.org →
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2023-5870Same product: Postgresql Postgresql
CVE-2023-5868Same product: Postgresql Postgresql
CVE-2025-13601Same product: Redhat Codeready Linux Builder For Arm64 Eus
CVE-2026-6473Same product: Postgresql Postgresql
CVE-2023-0179Same product: Redhat Enterprise Linux
CVE-2013-2729Same product: Redhat Enterprise Linux Desktop
CVE-2026-59089Same product: Redhat Enterprise Linux
CVE-2026-58384Same product: Redhat Enterprise Linux
CVE-2025-6196Same product: Redhat Enterprise Linux
CVE-2026-2272Same product: Redhat Enterprise Linux

Affected Assets

postgresql
postgresql
16.0 · 11.0 — 11.22 · 12.0 — 12.17 · 13.0 — 13.13
redhat
codeready linux builder eus
9.2
redhat
codeready linux builder eus for power little endian eus
9.0_ppc64le, 9.2_ppc64le
redhat
codeready linux builder for arm64 eus
8.6_aarch64, 9.0_aarch64, 9.2_aarch64
redhat
codeready linux builder for ibm z systems eus
9.0_s390x, 9.2_s390x
redhat
codeready linux builder for power little endian eus
9.0_ppc64le, 9.2_ppc64le
redhat
software collections
1.0
redhat
enterprise linux
8.0, 9.0
redhat
enterprise linux desktop
7.0
redhat
enterprise linux eus
8.6, 8.8, 9.0, 9.2
+11 more product configuration(s) — see NVD for full list

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

—

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

—

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

—

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V5.2.6

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices directly require use of safe arithmetic, bounds checks, and testing that prevent integer overflows.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

A.8.29 Security testing in development and acceptance mostly match
finds

Security testing in development can detect integer overflows before release.

A.8.25 Secure development life cycle partial match
prevents

Secure SDLC mandates input validation and arithmetic checks that prevent integer overflows.

A.8.26 Application security requirements partial match
degrades

Application security requirements include bounds checking and safe arithmetic to avoid overflow conditions.

A.8.27 Secure system architecture and engineering principles partial match
degrades

Secure architecture principles require defensive coding patterns that mitigate integer wraparound risks.

A.8.28 Secure coding partial match
prevents

Secure coding standards explicitly forbid unsafe integer operations and mandate overflow-safe constructs.

References