CVE-2023-23602VulnerabilityPublished 2 Jun 2023Updated 18 Dec 2025

CVE-2023-23602: Mozilla Firefox · Unchecked Error Condition

Affects Mozilla FirefoxSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 6.5 Medium : upgrade to 109 or 102.7 when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 06:26 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

6.5Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.6% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 48% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 109, 102.7

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N

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

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: Required: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability requires a user to take some action before the vulnerability can be exploited.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: None: There is no loss of confidentiality within the impacted component.
Integrity: High: There is a total loss of integrity, or a complete loss of protection. For example, the attacker is able to modify any/all files protected by the impacted component. Alternatively, only some files can be modified, but malicious modification would present a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 2 Jun 2023
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 2026-10-26.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Upgrade Mozilla Firefox to 109 or 102.7.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Mozilla Firefox	Affected <109 <102.7	Fixed in 109 102.7

AI-suggested

European organizations should prioritize updating Firefox to version 109 or later, and Thunderbird to version 102.7 or later, as these versions contain the necessary patches to address CVE-2023-23602. If you cannot patch yet, organizations should consider implementing strict network-level controls to monitor and restrict unauthorized WebSocket connections, especially those originating from client devices. Web application developers should review and reinforce CSP policies, ensuring comprehensive coverage and testing within all browser contexts, including WebWorkers. Security teams should educate users about the risks of interacting with untrusted web content to reduce the likelihood of exploitation requiring user interaction. Additionally, deploying endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions capable of monitoring unusual WebSocket activity can help detect potential exploitation attempts. Regular vulnerability scanning and patch management processes should be enforced to maintain up-to-date software versions.

Description

A mishandled security check when creating a WebSocket in a WebWorker caused the Content Security Policy connect-src header to be ignored. This could lead to connections to restricted origins from inside WebWorkers. This vulnerability affects Firefox < 109, Firefox ESR < 102.7, and Thunderbird < 102.7.

Impact

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a risk to the integrity of web applications and communications that rely on Firefox or Thunderbird clients. Attackers could exploit this flaw to bypass CSP restrictions and establish unauthorized WebSocket connections from WebWorkers, potentially leading to data exfiltration, unauthorized command and control communications, or injection of malicious payloads. This could compromise sensitive information or disrupt business operations, especially in sectors handling confidential data such as finance, healthcare, and government. Since Firefox and Thunderbird have significant user bases in Europe, particularly in privacy-conscious countries, the risk of targeted exploitation exists. The vulnerability does not directly impact confidentiality or availability but undermines the integrity of client-side security policies, which could be leveraged as part of a broader attack chain. The requirement for user interaction limits automated exploitation but does not eliminate risk, especially in phishing or social engineering scenarios common in European cyber threat landscapes.

CWE-754Improper Check for Unusual or Exceptional Conditions (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessLikelihood of exploit: MediumOWASP Top 10 A10:2025: Mishandling of Exceptional Conditions (opens in a new tab)
The product does not check or incorrectly checks for unusual or exceptional conditions that are not expected to occur frequently during day to day operation of the product.
Requirements · Language Selection
Use a language that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid.
Implementation
Check the results of all functions that return a value and verify that the value is expected.
Implementation
If using exception handling, catch and throw specific exceptions instead of overly-general exceptions (CWE-396, CWE-397). Catch and handle exceptions as locally as possible so that exceptions do not propagate too far up the call stack (CWE-705). Avoid unchecked or uncaught exceptions where feasible (CWE-248).
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Logging (opens in a new tab)
Error Handling (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V11.1.7 (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 18 Dec 2025, 15:57 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-754

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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