CVE-2022-44874 is a medium-severity vulnerability identified in the wasm3 project, specifically in the commit 7890a2097569fde845881e0b352d813573e371f9. The vulnerability arises from a segmentation fault triggered within the op_CallIndirect component located in the source file /m3_exec.h. Wasm3 is a lightweight WebAssembly interpreter designed for embedded systems and constrained environments. The segmentation fault corresponds to a classic out-of-bounds memory access or invalid pointer dereference, classified under CWE-787 (Out-of-bounds Write). This vulnerability can cause the affected application to crash or behave unpredictably, impacting availability. According to the CVSS v3.1 vector (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H), exploitation requires local access (AV:L), low attack complexity (AC:L), no privileges (PR:N), and user interaction (UI:R). The scope remains unchanged (S:U), and the impact is limited to availability (A:H) without affecting confidentiality or integrity. No known exploits are reported in the wild, and no patches or vendor information are currently available. The lack of vendor or product details suggests this vulnerability is tied to the wasm3 interpreter itself rather than a specific commercial product. Given the nature of wasm3 as an interpreter for WebAssembly bytecode, this vulnerability could be triggered by malicious or malformed WebAssembly modules executed locally or within embedded environments that utilize wasm3. The segmentation fault could lead to denial of service conditions, potentially disrupting critical embedded applications or services relying on wasm3 for WebAssembly execution.

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2022-44874 lies in availability disruption. Organizations using wasm3 in embedded systems, IoT devices, or specialized applications that execute WebAssembly modules locally could experience crashes or service interruptions if exploited. This could affect industrial control systems, smart devices, or edge computing platforms that rely on wasm3 for lightweight WebAssembly execution. While confidentiality and integrity are not directly impacted, availability loss in critical infrastructure or operational technology environments could lead to operational downtime, safety risks, or financial losses. The requirement for local access and user interaction limits remote exploitation, reducing the risk of widespread attacks. However, insider threats or compromised local users could trigger the vulnerability. The absence of known exploits suggests limited current threat activity, but organizations should remain vigilant, especially those integrating wasm3 into their technology stacks. The impact is more pronounced in sectors with embedded or IoT deployments, including manufacturing, energy, transportation, and smart city infrastructure prevalent across Europe.

1. Inventory and Assess: Identify all systems and devices within the organization that utilize wasm3 for WebAssembly execution, particularly embedded and IoT devices. 2. Restrict Local Access: Implement strict access controls to limit local user interaction with systems running wasm3, minimizing the risk of exploitation through user-triggered actions. 3. Input Validation and Sandboxing: Where possible, enforce strict validation of WebAssembly modules before execution and run wasm3 within sandboxed environments to contain potential crashes and prevent cascading failures. 4. Monitor for Crashes: Deploy monitoring solutions to detect abnormal application crashes or segmentation faults related to wasm3 processes, enabling rapid incident response. 5. Update and Patch Management: Although no patches are currently available, maintain vigilance for updates from the wasm3 project or downstream vendors and apply them promptly once released. 6. Incident Response Preparedness: Develop and test response plans for denial-of-service scenarios affecting embedded or critical systems using wasm3. 7. User Training: Educate local users and administrators about the risks of executing untrusted WebAssembly modules and the importance of avoiding suspicious inputs that could trigger the vulnerability.