CVE-2023-4641
MEDIUMDescription
A flaw was found in shadow-utils. When asking for a new password, shadow-utils asks the password twice. If the password fails on the second attempt, shadow-utils fails in cleaning the buffer used to store the first entry. This may allow an attacker with enough access to retrieve the password from the memory.
How to fix
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2023-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2028-04-01.
This Ubuntu release reached end-of-life on 2025-05-31. Extended security maintenance is available until 2030-04-02.
This vulnerability affects an unusually large number of packages. The highest-confidence fixes are shown above; the full list is longer. Check the referenced advisories for complete coverage.
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Remediation is compiled from vendor and distribution security advisories. Always confirm against the linked source for your exact version and platform.
CVSS v3 Vector
Exploitability
Impact
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
Exploit Intelligence
Low risk: more likely to be exploited than 17% of all known CVEs.
References
Related Vulnerabilities
Other CWE-303 vulnerabilities, ordered by exploit likelihood. View all
| CVE | Severity | CVSS | EPSS | Exploited | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2024-7593 | Critical | 9.8 | 100% | KEV | - |
| CVE-2023-29357 | Critical | 9.8 | 100% | KEV + Ransom | Fix |
| CVE-2020-8863 | High | 8.8 | 77% | - | - |
| CVE-2023-32152 | Medium | 6.5 | 29% | - | - |
| CVE-2023-32148 | Medium | 6.5 | 29% | - | - |
| CVE-2022-20695 | Critical | 10.0 | 20% | - | - |
Common questions
How do I fix CVE-2023-4641?
Published advisories record a fix for 25 affected products. The "How to fix" section on this page lists the fixed version and source advisory for each one, so apply the entry matching what you actually run.
Is CVE-2023-4641 being actively exploited?
Not that we know of. CVE-2023-4641 is not in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. Its EPSS score of 0.25% is the estimated probability that it will be exploited in the next 30 days. That is higher than 17% of all scored CVEs.
How severe is CVE-2023-4641?
CVE-2023-4641 has a CVSS v3 base score of 4.7, rated medium. CVSS rates the technical impact if the vulnerability is exploited, not how likely that is, so weigh it alongside the exploit-prediction score when you decide what to patch first.
What does CVE-2023-4641 affect?
Published advisories record a fix for shadow-utils (Amazon), shadow-utils-debuginfo (Amazon), shadow-utils-debugsource (Amazon), shadow-utils-subid (Amazon), and 21 more. Only products with a sourced advisory are listed, so treat this as what we can cite rather than a complete inventory.
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This product uses NVD data but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. EPSS scores courtesy of FIRST.org (https://www.first.org/epss). Source: CISA KEV Catalog. Data as of 2026-06-17.